YuGiOh! 5D's: Stardust Accelerator
by Colossal Fighter GX
Summary: With no memory of who he is of where he came from, 18 yr. old Jason Hutchins must kick into overdrive to uncover his forgotten past. but not without the help of his friends, characters old and new. it's time to Accelerate!
1. Prolouge

i do not own yugioh

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Prolouge**

Awakened in a runed-down city, a young boy has no memory of his past.

The only things he now have on him are his duel disk, and his deck.

Now the world of duel monsters have reached a new era.

New cards...

New monsters...

And faster duels!

This boy must beat the odds to reveal his hidden memories...

Along with the help of new friends he will make along the way.

It's time to kick into overdrive!

Jason Hutchins, ACCELERATE!!!


	2. Duelist's Past and Present

i do not own yugioh

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 1:**

**Recap: Duelist's Past and Present**

* * *

New Domino City, a utopia where even the highest of status reside. a eden where even the rarest of plantlife grows and blooms. It is also the most common place where the most popular card game ever created has been played: Duel Monsters.

Each player begins with a set number of 4000 and a deck containing 40 to 60 cards. A turn-based duel ensues in which players use Monsters, Spells, and Traps, each represented by a single card, to combat their opponents. Players , or duelists, as they are called in this game, can play monsters in Attack or Defense position, and each Attack Position monster can attack once per turn. The first player to force thier oponent's life points to 0 wins the duel.

But the game didn't stop with just the cards. While other popular card gamers use game mats and card sleeves, duelists use 'duel disks', special gauntlets they use to play thier cards while 'dueling with style', as some may say. There are even special tournaments where duelists from pre-schooler to senior citizen play for special titles, especially that of a 'pro-duelist'. There are even special duelists who made names for themselves, duelists such as Yugi Moto, the publicly proclaimed 'King of Games' and champion of tournaments such as Duelist Kingdom, Battle City, and The Kaiba Corp Grand Championship, Seto Kaiba, young president of Kaiba Corp and self-proclaimed rival of Yugi, and Joey Wheeler, Yugi's best friend and 'dueling underdog'.

Nearly a decade later, a school has been established to teach young duelists the basic and advanced dueling methods and train the next generation of would be professionals... a school called Duel Academy. Thanks to the academy's top staffs, many young students became many of the most powerful duelist on the planet, such as Syrus Truesdale, an Obelisk-Blue whose child-like physique and toy-like Vehicroid monsters make hime virturally unpredictable in battle, Tyranno Hassleberry, a young Ra-Yellow soldier who overwhelms his opponents with his massive dinosaur cards, hence his name, and Jaden Yuki, with the help of his gallant Elemental Heroes, the extra terrestrial Neo-Spacians, his cute and furry familiar Winged Kuriboh, and his dark guardian angel Yubel, has made the grade all the way as a lowly 'Slifer-Slacker', and also saved the humanity and the entire world from an eternal shadow realm.

But that doesn't stop there. Decades later, the world of dueling has evolved. A new addition has been introduced as a face-paced, heart pounding competition known as Turbo Duels. Armed with dueling motorcycles known as Duel Runners, Turbo Duelists duel through the road with the now 'Speed World' mechanic. Most turbo duels take place at a large stadium just for that occasion, known as the KaibaDome. As we now turn to the present, the story begins in New Domino's KaibaDome, where a turbo duel is taking place. One duelist is riding a white duel runner, operating with just one wheel. As he speeds around the track, he summons a giant red dragon. It has three horns on it's head, one which runs a little down his neck, and has malicious yellow eyes.

"Red Dragon Archfiend, end this!" The dragon obeyed. as it dashes through the sky darting towards his master's opponent, it channeled a bright orange-red hell-fire in its right arm. "Go, Absolute Powerforce!!!" The dragon charged its burning claws at its victim, whose runner instantly shut down.

"He won, won, won again today!" the M.C. shouted, "He's just too good! Nobody can take his throne!!" the croud road in amazement. "How long is his undefeated streak going to go on? A living legend, he's our one and only King, Jack Atlas!!"

Jack Atlas wears a white jacket with spikes on his sholders, and wears a white helmet with a blue nosepiece and a green visor. "There's no denying i'm the king! The goddess of victory smiles upon me!" The crowd roars with exciting volume. Pleased with his audience's praise, he shoots his right index finger to the sky. "Who's the Master of Faster?! Who rules the duels?! Who's the most powerful Turbo Duelist in New Domino City?!" the audience cried out to Jack. "That's right, it's me! JACK ATLAS!!!

* * *

Duel Monsters Database:

Red Dragon Archfiend

LV: 8

Type:Dragon

ATK/DEF: 3000/2000


	3. A Boy and his Turbo Booster

i do not own yugioh

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 2:**

**A Boy and his Turbo Booster**

* * *

On an island not far from New Domino, resides a smaller city called the 'Satellite'. Once the original Domino City , the city suffers from extensive urban decay, and it is mostly used as a plant to recycle the garbage from New Domino City. Residents of Satellite are made to work in the plant, and are often looked down upon by many residents of New Domino City, generally referred as "scum" or "trash". Satellite residents do not have the purchasing power to acquire goods required for dueling on the market, or whatever economy is used in Satellite. There is no legal class mobility in Satellite.

"Oh, no!" a small boy cried, "Someone's lying on the ground!"

Lying in front of him in the alleyway is a young man, basically out of his teens, lying unconsciously on the ground. "Hey! You OK?! Pull yourself together!"

"Mm" munbling something out of his lips, the man slowly opens a pair of big, greyish-blue and finds himself in an unfamiliar place. the man is wearing dark-blue jeans, and a matching jean jacket over his white shirt. on his are a pair of black Converse's with red lining on them. his short black hair has a giant bang with a grey highlight in the middle, that ran from his covered forhead to the right side of his head.

"Oh, thank goodness! You came to." the boy said, "You're not hurt, are you?" He checked the taller boy for any bruises or cuts. "It doesn't seem like you're injured. And it looks like you weren't attcked by any thugs... but it's dangerous here, you know. So what are you doing just lying there in a place like this?

"..." the taller boy said nothing. Heck, he didn't know what to say.

"...Uh...you don't want to answer me? Well, have it your way..."

"..."

"But come to think of it, i've never seen you around here before. Where did you come from?"

"..."

"Oh... you really don't want to tell me, huh?"

"..."

With the ominous silence the taller boy was giving, the smaller one began to feel unconfortable. So he decided to break the silence some more. "Um... this is the Satallite. I guess they used to call this place Domino city a long time ago... Oh, right! I still haven't introduced myself! The name's Rally. Rally Dawson! So what's your name?"

After a long pause, the stranger looked up from where he was sitting to the young boy's face. with quivering lips, he finally spoke. "I... I-I don't know."

"What?! You don't know!? Are you nuts or something?!" The boy exclaimed with a puzzled look on his face. "It's your own name, ya know!"

"Look, I just don't know, okay?" the stranger said. "I must've slipped my mind or some thing."

"Huh... Oh! Maybe you have amnesia!? Ooh, that's a toughie! So what should we do? If only we had some kind of clue to go on..." Rally rested his hand under his chin to think. The taller boy did the same thing. but nothing was coming up. Just as they were about to give up, Rally noticed something on the stranger's left arm. "Hey, there! What's that you're carrying? Isn't that a Duel Disk?!"

The stranger looked on his arm to see a giant white ornament strapped to it. It has a small red gem on it and a long wing on the side. This was known as a Standard Duel Disk.

"So you're a duelist, are you?" Rally said. "Then maybe you'll remember something if you have a duel with some body! Why not duel with me then?!"

The stranger looked up tp Rally. "You really thing a duel would help?!"

"Well, we don't have any other options."

Rally has a point. So the stranger decided to go along with it. "Alright..." he stand up in front of Rally, who is just 1/3 shorter that the stranger is. "I guess the only thing to do is to get it over with."

"Ah! I completely forgot them!" Rally cried. "I don't have my deck with me. So lemme go get it. Just wait here for a few minutes. I'll be right back!" At that, Rally ran off.

Latter, Rally returned with his own duel disk in hand. his disk is alot different from the stranger's and very worn. I looks like the one that was used in the Battle City Tournament. "Thanks for waiting there."

"You said that a duel can get my memory back, so what other choice do I have?"

"Alright let the battle begin!" both players activated thier duel disks and inserted thier decks into the slots.

"Duel!" they both shouted.

**Rally: 4000**

**Stranger: 4000**

**"**I guess I'll go first, the stranger said as he drew his card. "I'll start by playing (1)Genex Controller (1400/1200) in attack mode." A small robot with a huge head appeared in front of him. "Then I set two cards face-down and end my turn."

"I guess it's my turn, then." Rally drew his card. "I play the spell card Mind Control! By giving up 800 of my life points, I can take control of one of your monsters for the rest of the turn."

**Rally: 3200**

**Stranger: 4000**

A giant hole which unleashed a pair of blue hands took hold of Genex Controller and placed it onto Rally's side of the field. "Next up, I summon X-Head Cannon (1800/1500) an attack mode," A yellow robot bigger than Genex appeared in front of Rally. It has a pair of giant yellow gauntlets around his hands, and is mounted with a couple of long-ranged cannons. "...and then I play the continuous spell, Banner of courage! This boosts up all monsters on my side by 200 during the battle phase!" A giant war banner rose from the ground boosting Rally's two monsters.

X-Head: (2000/1700)

Genex: (1600/1400)

"And since you have no monsters to protect you, I can attack directly! First comes X-Head cannon..." The yellow mecha lowered its sholder-mounted cannons towards the stranger and charged them for an attack. "...now fire!" the mecha fired two beams of blue light towards the stranger.

"Sorry, but I activate my trap card, Magical Cylinder." the stranger said as one of the face-down cards in front of him opened up, revealing a set of two cylinders. "It not only negates your monster's attack with one cylinder..." the beams dissapeared into the first tunnel. "...it also deals damage equal to the attacking monster's ATK power from the other one..." The other cylinder fired off the same attack from the second tunnel. "...taking out half of your life points." The beams of light connected and hit Rally, taking out 2000 of his life points.

**Rally: 2000**

**Stranger: 4000**

"At least i have one other monster." Rally said. "Genex Controller, attack!"

"Not so fast." The stranger revealed his seccond face-down. "I play the Scrap-Iron Scarecrow! It can also cancel out a monster's attack." A scarecrow made of scrapped metal with a football helmet and goggles for a face appeared in front of Genex, forcing the monster to with draw. "And once it's cancelled, I can re-set my scarecrow face-down again. The only catch is that i'm only allowed to use this trap card once per turn." After that, the scarcrow went back into its card.

"Then I set one card face-down and end my turn." Genex went back to the stranger's side, since Brain Control expired.

"Then I guess it's my turn." the stranger drew his card. "I summon (2)Genex Heat (2000/1300) in attack mode." A giant furnace-like machine appeared.

"But that's a level 5 monster." Rally said. "You have to release another monster to summon it."

"Normally, that would be the case. But thanks to Heat's scpecial ability, if i have a Genex Controller on the field, which I do, he can be summoned even without a monster release."

"Wow! I have no idea that there's a monster like that!"

"Well, then i'm not do. It's time to give him a little tune-up!" Both Genex Controller and Genex Heat flew to the sky. Controller dissapeared in a flash of light, leaving three glowing rings in it's place. Heat's solid body became transparent, revealing five shining stars. Heat then went through the small tinnel of circles, not leaving out of it. And just when the stars line up, they create a single ray of light which greww bigger ang bigger until it even covered the ring-tunnel. When the light finally fadded, a new monster took it's place. Its mechanical arms were short and stubby, but gave off a fury of blue-colored flames from it's sholders. it's eyes flashed the same color from its cylindal robot head. An it's torso is a giant furnace with a window on it's chest, the whole body supported by a small pair of legs. The machine's body gave off a burning cerulean glow. "(3)Thermal Genex (2400/1200), Accelerate!"

"Cool! You just played a syncro monster! No one has those in the Satelite!"

"Oh, yeah? Then if you think that's cool, check out one of Thermal's special abilities." the stranger said as he raised his arm and finger up towards the mechanical furnace, unleashing more blue flames. "He gains 200 ATK points for every Fire attribute monster in my graveyard (2600/1200). Now it's time for Thermal Genex to attack." Thermal opens the window on his torso and concentrates the flame towards X-Head Cannon. "Go, Thermal Furnace Blaze!" Thermal unleshes the fire like a cannon and destroyed his target, takin out some of Rally's life points.

R: 1200

S: 4000

"And that's not all. This is when Thermal's second ability kicks in. Whenever he deals battle damage, he inflicts an extra 200 points for every Genex monster in my graveyard. And since I have 2 monsters already..." Thermal channels his fire to the form of two fire-ball in his furnace torso. "...you lose 400 life point. Go, Furnace Burn!" The giant furnace fired the two flames straight toward Rally.

R: 800

S: 4000

"And after setting a face-down, that'll just about do it for me."

"Man, it's just been three turns and i'm already behind." Rally whined as he drew his card. "Wait a minute! I play the monster Gradius(1200/800) in attack mode. Next I special summon (3)Gradius' Option(?/?) from my hand in attack mode as well." A giant fighter jet appeared over Rally next to a small crimson crystal.

"Wait, how come it's power isn't determined?" the stranger pointed to the crystal.

"I'm getting to that part. Gradius' Option's ATK and DEF are always the same as any Gradius I have on the field."

Gradius's Option: (1200/800)

"Next up, since I normal summoned a monster on the field, I can special summon this guy. Say hello to (4)Turbo Booster (0/0)!" A yellow mecha appears on the field under Gradius and Gradius's Option. It's giant arms somewhat resembles actual rocket boosters, hence the name. "And to top it off, I play my face-down!" Rally's card opened up and revealed three ladies wearing blue robes. "With this card, none of my monsters can be destroyed by battle. Also, I don't take any battle damage!" A blue aura surrounded all three of his monsters. "And thanks to my Banner of Courage, all my monsters gain a 200 point boost!"

Gradius: (1400/800)

Gradius' Option: (1400/800)

Turbo Booster: (200/0)

"Alright, Turbo Booster, it's time to attack!" The small yellow machine charged towards Thermal, which was deflected by it's burning blue armor.

"But all of your monsters have less attack points." The stranger face-faulted. "Plus, you would've used your Waboku card when my monster attacks yours, not the other way around. Why would you attack with a monster that has 200 ATK points?"

"To activate Turbo Booster's special ability: when any of my monsters attack one of yours, I can release Turbo Booster to destroy that monster!" Turbo's arms aimed it's giant arms at Thermal Genex. Tailed by a pair of roaring fires, it's boosters rocketed the giant furnace and blown it to piece. "And since you have no more monsters on the field, Gradius and Gradius' Option can attack you directly!" After Gradius's Option assumes the form of the original Gradius, both jets charged their lasers and fired.

"Sorry, but I activate my face-down..." the stranger pressed one of the buttons on his duel disk. "...Sakuretsu Armor. It activates when an opposing monster attacks. It can destroy one monster card. And the card i'm selecting will be your Gradius." both the stranger and Rally watched as the giant jet explodes. "And since there's no Gradius on the field, your Gradius' Option joins him." he says as the other jet follows suit.

"Aw, man," Rally groans, "I used all the cards in my hand for this combo and it still didn't work."

"Oh well, better luck next duel..." The stranger drew his card. "...because this duel is over. I play the spell, Monster Reborn!"

"Monster Reborn?! Then that means..."

"You guessed it: with this, I can bring back one monster from my graveyard. And I think you can guess which one i'm summoning." glowing from the earth in a flash of blue light, Thermal Genex returns in all it's blazing glory. "Thermal Genex, end this with Thermal Furnace Blaze!" Thermal unleashes a blast super-hot blue flames that exploded over Rally, taking out the rest of his life points.

**Rally: 0**

**Stranger: 4000**

"I guess that's game." the stranger smiled. He walks over to Rally, who was kneeling with his head low. "C'mon, don't feel bad. maybe I just got lucky today."

That's when Rally suddenly lifts his head up, with a huge grin on his face. "Wow! You're really good!" The small boy jumped to his feet. "Unbelievable! It's been awhile since I had such a fun duel! Thanks a lot! That was cool!"

"Heh, you're welcome, I guess." the stranger blushed and rubbed the back of his head.

"So anyway, did you remember anything?"

For a few moments, the stranger thought long and hard, but nothing came up. "Sorry. Nothing."

"Oh. Well, at least we tried. I better go."

As the stranger watches the child walk away, something unexpected happened. He receives a sharp jolt beyond his skull. That's when he realizes something.

"Hey, wait up!" he shouted to Rally and caught up with him. "I just remembered something." Tugging a chrome-beaded necklace around his neck, he pulls out a dog tag. On one side branded the following inscriptions:

**SUBJECT: D-5**

**EPSILON **

And on the opposite side branded what seems to be a name, and a numeric code:

**JASON I. HUTCHINS**

**23693634**

"I think I know who I am now." the stranger said, "My name, Rally, is Jason Issac Hutchins."

**To Be Continued...**

**

* * *

**

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1)Genex Controller**

**Stats:** [Machine/Tuner] LV3 ATK/1400 DEF/1200  
**Type:** Dark

**(2)Genex Heat**

******Stats:** [Pyro/Effect] LV5 ATK/2000 DEF/1300  
**Type:** Fire

**Effect:** If you control a face-up "Genex Controller", you can Normal Summon this card without Tribute.

**(3)Thermal Genex**

******Stats:** [Machine/Synchro/Effect] LV8 ATK/2400 DEF/1200  
**Type:** Fire

**Synchro Requirements:** "Genex Controller" + 1 or more FIRE non-Tuner Monsters

**Effect:This card gains 200 ATK for each FIRE monster in your Graveyard. If this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle, inflict damage to your opponent equal to the number of "Genex" monsters in your Graveyard x 200.**

**(4)Turbo Booster**

******Stats:** [Machine/Effect] LV1 ATK/ 0 DEF/ 0  
**Type:** EARTH

**Effect:** If you Normal Summon a monster this turn, you can Special Summon this card from your hand. You can Tribute this card to destroy 1 monster your opponent controls that battled one of your monsters this turn.

* * *

**Author's Note: I've been trying to think of a few OC characters for this story. But i'm gonna need your help on this. Just send in your ideas via reviews of e-mail. Make sure to include the name, age, character description, and favorite key-card. Remember, only one character per e-mail. You might see your character in future chapters. Please review.**


	4. Total Equip

disclaimer: I don't own yugioh

* * *

As the stranger watches the child walk away, something unexpected happened. He receives a sharp jolt beyond his skull. That's when he realizes something.

"Hey, wait up!" he shouted to Rally and caught up with him. "I just remembered something." Tugging a chrome-beaded necklace around his neck, he pulls out a dog tag. On one side branded the following inscriptions:

**SUBJECT: D-5**

**EPSILON**

And on the opposite side branded what seems to be a name, and a numeric code:

**JASON I. HUTCHINS**

**23693634**

"I think I know who I am now." the stranger said, "My name, Rally, is Jason Issac Hutchins."

"So your name is Jason Hutchins, huh? Well,..." Rally said, as he held out his hand. "... nice to meet you, Jason!"

"Heh, nice to meet you, too." Jason took the boy's hand and shook it. "It's so weird I remembered my name after I dueled."

"Then maybe that's it! I bet you'll remember other things if you dueled some more."

"You really think so?" Jason took a look at his duel disk for a moment, the glanced back at Rally. "Are there other duelist around here?"

"Well, basically us people in the Satellite aren't allowed to play Duel Monsters. But my friends and I always hang out in a place not too far from here." Rally pointed to the street. If you go south, you'll find a subway. That's where we always meet up. I wish I could show you myself, but I got something to do now."

"That alright, but I might be a stranger to them. What if the don't let me in?"

"Don't worry about it, OK? I'm sure they'll let you in. They're all good guys. You just need to say my name."

"That's all I have to do huh? OK, I'll go."

"Great! I'll be back soon anyway, so I'll introduce you to everyone at that time. And maybe you should duel a little while you're waiting for me. Well, OK then! See ya later!"

As he watched Rally run through the streets, Jason looked towards the smog-invaded sky. 'How did I lose my memory?' he thought. 'Just who am I and what am doing here in a place like this?'

* * *

**Old Domino City... Now a run-down junk town known as the Satellite**.

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces**. **It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 3:**

**Total Equip

* * *

  
**

Right after Rally left, Jason decided to take his advice and went on his way to the subway station. The path looks pretty rough. The sidewalks were old and cracked and the light posts were rusted. The buildings around him have broken windows and unstable debris. They look like they could collapse any minute.

Finally he made it to the subway entrance. He was just about to enter when a man walked out. He was tall and wears a blue bandanna and a white shirt over a green sweater. "Hm, I've never seen you before. So what do you want with us? Only our friends are allowed to enter the subways."

"Rally Dawson said I can come," Jason said. "He can't come with me because he said he gat a few errands to run. But he said he'll introduce everyone later. So you should let me in first."

"Rally, huh? Well, I don't know you, so no matter what you say, I'm mot buying it."

"But Rally said…"

"I you understand what I'm saying," the man replied, "you better leave. No matter what, you can't come in."

"…alright." Jason sighed. He turns around and begins to walk away. 'Maybe I could stand by the subway until rally comes back…" he thought.

"Hey, wait a second," the man said, "is that a duel disk you're carrying?"

Jason looks at his disk and looks back at the man. "Yeah, why? Are you a duelist, too?"

"Kinda, it was just getting boring around here anyway… so why don't we have a duel then?" the man takes out his duel disk. It's the same as Rally's. "Alright, if you beat me, then I'll believe that story you just told me."

"Oh? Alright, I'll do it." Both players walked out to the middle of the street. The Satellite doesn't have any cars here, so they don't need to worry about any getting in their way. They both turned on their disks and drew five cards each.

**Jason: 4000**

**Man: 4000**

"I'll go first." Jason drew his sixth card. "I'll start by playing (1)Genex Gaia (1000/1900) in defense mode." A bronze-plated robot appeared and kneeled in front of Jason. It was mixed with several rock parts, and is armed with a jackhammer on his left arm and holding a pick-ax in his right hand. "Then I place two cards face-down and end my turn."

"Alright," the man drew, "First I'll summon Battle Ox (1700/1000) in attack mode." A giant armored minataur appeared wielding a silver ax. "Next I equip him with the Lucky Iron Ax equip spell." A dark-colored iron ax appeared in the ox's empty hand.

Battle Ox: 2200/1000

"This gives Battle Ox 500 extra attack points, higher that your gaia thing. Now attack." The minataur drags his right foot on the ground before charging towards Gaia with both axes in hand, only to be stopped by a large golden energy shield. "What just happened?!"

"My Genex-D Shield trap card. It activates when a monster attacks a Genex, and instantly cancels out your attack. But that's not all: I can also set it face-down again to use for another turn." Jason's trap card flipped back down.

"I'll just set two cards face-down for now." 3 cards appear in front of him.

"It's time to show you another Genex." Jason drew. "But first I'll play the Double Summon spell card. This lets me normal summon an extra monster this turn." Jason slipped the card into a slot on his duel disk. "Next I summon (2)Genex Worker (1200/1200) in attack mode." The machine Jason summoned is a floating tank with many engines on the top of it. "Next up is Genex Controller, whom I also place in attack mode. Then comes Genex Worker's special ability, which lets me special summon a Genex monster from my hand, at the cost of releasing Genex Worker." Jason sent Worker to the graveyard slot, and replaced it with another monster. "And that means I can summon (3)Solar Genex (2500/1500) directly from my hand." The monster he played was a golden-plated robot, with fin-like wings on its wrists, and complete with a sholder-mounted jetpack with a large wingspan. "Attack now, Solar." Solar flew towards the man's Ox.

"Not so fast," the man flipped one of his two face-downs. "I'll activate my trap card: Negate Attack! It lets me negate a monster's attack and end the battle phase." A huge barrier intercepted Jason's robot as it returns to his position on the field.

"And since we skipped to the 2nd main phase, I think I'll put up some extra 'D' for myself. Genex Controller, time to give Gaia a little tune-up!" Both Genex Controller and Genex Gaia rose to the sky. Controller dissapeared in a flash of light, leaving three green rings in it's place. Gaia's rocky/metal body became transparent, revealing 3 stars. Gaia entered the tunnel of circles, with the stars lining up afterwards. After being consumed by a bright beam of light, a new monster took place. This giant mecha has giant bronze arms to match its metal plating, armed with amber-glowing pick-axes coming from both sides of its hands. "(4)Geo Genex (1800/2800), Accelerate!" The machine concluded its entrance in defense position. "And since a genex monster was sent to the graveyard, Solar Genex can use the power of 'Solar Shot' to deal 500 points of damage to your life points." Solar shot out a beam of light from a gem on his torso. The man twitched as it hit his chest.

**Jason: 4000**

**Man: 3500**

"And with that, i'll end my turn."

"Alright, my move, then," the man drew, "I activate the spell, Hidden Armory. By sending the top card from my deck to the graveyard, I can add one equip spell from my deck, to my hand." The man placed his top card in his graveyard slot, and plucked out another card from his deck. Then he shuffled his deck and put it back into his deck slot. "Although I can't use a normal summon on the turn Hidden Armory was activated, I can, of course, special summon, thanks tho this trap card." He flips up his second face-down. "Birthright lets me summon a monster from my grave, as long as that monster is a normal monster. And I have just the perfect monster for the job." A strange figure rose up from the ground. The summoned monster was a female wearind a red dress with green shoulderpads with yellow lining, complete wearing a giant, golden headress. "This is the card I discarded by using Hidden Armory. So say hello to Cosmo Queen (2900/2450)! Next I equip Battle Ox with another spell card: Big Bang Shot!" Battle Ox's right leg is replaced by a chrome, mechanical one. "This gives Battle Ox another 400 ATK point."

Battle Ox: 2600/1000

"Now my monsters are stronger than yours. So I'll attack Solar Genex with Battle Ox!" The minitaur charges at the golden mecha.

"Did you forget about my Genex-D Shield trap card?" Jason activates his barrier and blocked Battle Ox's attack.

"Actually, I didn't. That's why I used Battle Ox as a diversion so I can attack you Solar Genex with my Cosmo Queen!" Her royal highness reached to the sky as she summoned many stars to her side. Those stars came together to form a bigger star in the queen's hands. "Go, Shooting Star Smackdown!" The queen fired her bright fireball ready to destroy Solar Genex.

"Not so fast! I activate my second face-down," Jason flipped up is card and the star the Cosmo Queen fired was intercepted by a multi-colored mirror. The star bounced back to it's master and exploded on contact, destroying both her and the Battle Ox.

"Wat just happened?! How did my monsters get destroyed?!"

"The face-down I activated a moment ago was a trap card called Genex Mirror Shield. It works just like the original Mirror Force trap card. When a Genex monster I have is attacked, I can use the power of Genex Mirror Shield to multiply that attack ten-fold and deflect it, destroy all monsters on your side of the field."

The man has an amazed look on his face. "Woah, I didn't think there was a card as powerful as that. You really must be good."

"Well, I wish I could show you more, but this duel is over." the man drew his last card. "First I'll summon (5)Turbine Genex (1400/1300) in attack mode," a jade-glowing steamroller-like machine appeared on the field. "While this guy's on the field, all the Genex monsters I have gain 400 ATK points."

Solar Genex: 2900/1500

Geo Genex: 2200/2800

Turbine Genex: 1800/1300

"Next I switch Geo Genex into attack position. But that's not all: whenever there's a level 4 or lower Genex monster on the field, Geo can use the power of 'Strength Shift' to switch his ATK and DEF power." Geo rose up from the ground, releasing an exaust of topaz energy from it's mechanical body.

Geo Genex: 3200/1800

"And with your field empty of monsters, that means this duel ends now. Solar Genex, attack!" Solar unleashes a giant beam of light to deal the man a massive amount of damage.

**Jason: 4000**

**Man: 600**

"Alright, Geo! Finish him off with Magma Melee!" Geo's arms glowed a burning hot orange as it charged directly at the man and knocked him to the ground.

**Jason: 4000**

**Man: 0**

"Aw...you got me," the man said. "OK, I'll believe that you actually know Rally."

Speaking of which, Rally just shown up when they finished dueling. "Hey, Blitz! Ah, you guys were dueling, weren't you?"

"Well, we're talking about a stranger here." the man named Blitz said. "I thought I'd drive him off, but he's pretty strong."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. We've got a real duelist on our hands! So let me introduce you. This is Jason Hutchins. We met a little while ago. And Jason, this is Blitz. He's one of our best buds!"

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Blitz." Jason reached out to shake hands.

"Sorry for doubting you back there." Blitz shook, "It's good to meet you too, Jason."

"Say, Blitz," Rally stepped in, "I think Jason has amnesia or something. Isn't the anything we can do to help?"

"Amnesia, huh? As in he can't remember things from the past? Whoa, that's a toughie..."

"Yeah..." Jason said. "I found a dog tag around my neck when Rally and I dueled a while back. That's when I discovered my name. But aside from that, I don't remember anything else..."

"...except that Jason is a duelist with a whole lot of skill!" Rally finished.

"So a duel brought back your name, huh?" Blitz wondered, "I wonder then if dueling me also helped bring something back?"

"Nope, nothing." Jason said.

"Ah, it's alright, Jason," Rally said, "I bet it'll all come back soon enough!" he pulled Jason's free arm and led him to the subway. "I'd better introduce you to the rest of the gang. Come on!"

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1)Genex Gaia**

**Stats: [Rock/Effect] LV3 ATK/1000 DEF/1900  
Type: Earth  
Effect: If this card would be destroyed, you can destroy 1 "Genex Controller" instead.**

**(2)Genex Worker**

**Stats: [Machine/Effect] LV3 ATK/1200 DEF/1200  
Type: Wind **  
**Description: You can Tribute this card to Special Summon 1 "Genex" monster from your hand.**

**(3)Solar Genex**

**Stats: [Machine/Effect] LV7 ATK/2500 DEF/1500  
Type: Light  
Effect: This card can be Normal Summoned by Tributing 1 "Genex" monster. Each time a face-up "Genex" monster(s) you control is sent to the Graveyard, inflict 500 damage to your opponent.**

**(4)Geo Genex**

**Stats: [Machine/Synchro] LV6 ATK/1800 DEF/2800  
Type: Earth **

**Synchro Requirements: 1 "Genex Controller" + 1 or more EARTH non-Tuner monsters **

**Effect: While you control a face-up Level 4 or lower "Genex" monster, you can switch the original ATK and DEF of this card until the End** **Phase. This effect can only be used once per Turn.**

**(5)Turbine Genex**

**Stats: [Machine/Effect] LV4 ATK/1400 DEF/1300  
Type: Earth  
Effect: If you control a face-up "Genex Controller", you can Normal Summon this card without Tribute.**

**

* * *

**

CF GX: Well that's it for this chapter. Next time, you'll see the debut of Yusei Fudo.

Here's one of the OC canadates for this story:

Name: Nathan Turner

Age: 18

Appearance: Spiky black hair

Black T-Shirt with a Flaming on the front

Dark Blue Jeans with a chain hanging out the left pocket

Black Sneakers

Favorite Key Card: Jinzo-Lord

Description: Despite seeming like a bad guy you don't want to be around, he's a nice person past that. However, every time he duels with his favorite monster it ends up becoming real damage.

**That doesn't mean it'll be the only one. i still be waiting for many more OCs. Please review.**


	5. Speed Spells and Turbo Duels

disclaimer: dont own yugioh

* * *

"Alright, Geo! Finish him off with Magma Melee!" Geo's arms glowed a burning hot orange as it charged directly at the man and knocked him to the ground.

**Jason: 4000**

**Man: 0**

"Aw...you got me," the man said. "OK, I'll believe that you actually know Rally."

Speaking of which, Rally just shown up when they finished dueling. "Hey, Blitz! Ah, you guys were dueling, weren't you?"

"Well, we're talking about a stranger here." the man named Blitz said. "I thought I'd drive him off, but he's pretty strong."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. We've got a real duelist on our hands! So let me introduce you. This is Jason Hutchins. We met a little while ago. And Jason, this is Blitz. He's one of our best buds!"

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Blitz." Jason reached out to shake hands.

"Sorry for doubting you back there." Blitz shook, "It's good to meet you too, Jason."

"Say, Blitz," Rally stepped in, "I think Jason has amnesia or something. Isn't the anything we can do to help?"

"Amnesia, huh? As in he can't remember things from the past? Whoa, that's a toughie..."

"Yeah..." Jason said. "I found a dog tag around my neck when Rally and I dueled a while back. That's when I discovered my name. But aside from that, I don't remember anything else..."

"...except that Jason is a duelist with a whole lot of skill!" Rally finished.

"So a duel brought back your name, huh?" Blitz wondered, "I wonder then if dueling me also helped bring something back?"

"Nope, nothing." Jason said.

"Ah, it's alright, Jason," Rally said, "I bet it'll all come back soon enough!" he pulled Jason's free arm and led him to the subway. "I'd better introduce you to the rest of the gang. Come on!"

When they got into the station, Jason met two more people. One is a big-boned guy with short, spiky brown hair. The other wears small glasses resting on his nose and has blue dreadlocks tied up in a ponytail. Their names were respectively, Tank and Nervin.

"Hey, Rally!" Tank said and looked at Jason, "Huh? Who's that?"

"Tank and Nervin, This is Jason Hutchins. We just met."

"Of course!"

"That's OK then," Nervin said, shaking Jason's hand. "I'm Nervin. Good to meet you."

"I'm Tank." Tank did the same.

"Hey, guys," Rally said. "Did you know that Jason's a duelist?!"

"A duelist, huh?" Tank takes out his cards. "How about a duel with me?"

"Hey! I was just going to challenge him!" Nervin did the same. "…Alright, I'm after Tank. That's a promise!"

"Since that's settled, I guess I'll go ahead and watch." Jason leaned on the side of an old subway train. "Good luck, Jason!"

* * *

**Old Domino City... Now a run-down junk town known as the Satellite**.

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces**. **It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 4:**

**Speed Spells and Turbo Duels**

**

* * *

**

**Later...**

"Looks like the duel's over." Rally said. "So do you remember anything?"

"Nope," Jason said plainly. "Still nothing."

"Hmm… I know! There's this shack up ahead! Wanna go?"

"OK" Jason and Rally walked a few feet to a large yellow tent. Inside was a little cluttered, but it does have a few old pieces of furniture and a laptop lying on a desk on the side.

"There's a lot of stuff, so watch you step. Make sure you don't touch the computer on your right, OK?" Suddenly, they hear a strange whirring sound. As it got closer and closer, it seems Jason recognized that sound before, but where? "Huh? Has Yusei come back?" Rally said, "Let's step out for a minute."

When they exited from the shack and ran to the edge where the rails are, they saw a bright red motorcycle coming to them. As the bike stopped beside theme, the driver got off and took of his red helmet. It revealed a young man about Jason's age, with blue eyes and spiky black hair with yellow highlights. "Hi, Rally…" he said and took a glance at Jason. "Who's that?"

"Hey, Yusei! This is Jason Hutchins. There's something odd about Jason, but not in a bad way. I brought him by here to become one of our friends, and now everyone's fine with it! Guess what: Jason's a duelist, too."

Yusei looked at Jason, not changing his expression. "I see. I'm going to take another ride." Yusei put his helmet back on and drove off. While Jason took a long look at Yusei's motorcycle, something unexpected happened: a small jolt of lightning ran through his head…

**He finds himself riding along an abandoned highway… riding on a Duel Runner! There he was drawing a card from his deck. Although the was an unbearable pain on his right arm, he never let go of that card until he put in the slot of his duel runner.**

**"I activate a speed spell: Wheelie Breaker!"**

"...Hey! Are you OK, Jason?"

Jason snapped back to reality as response to Rally's call.

"What just happened? Did you remember anything?"

"Wait a minute…I think I did!" Jason checks his duel disk and saw 3 cards hidden in a space inside. As he took out the cards, he realized what he was holding are two spell cards and one trap card: one spell titled (1)Speed World, the other, (2)Wheelie Breaker, and the trap, a card he is somehow familiar with, _Bonds_.

"Whoa! Those are speed spell cards!" Rally exclaimed.

"A moment ago I felt like I caught that french disease that makes things happen to you twice(a)," Jason said, "I had some kind of vision where I was riding a motorcycle, kinda like the one that Yusei guy was riding, but a very different frame and color. I was hurt badly from my right arm, but besides that, I was playing this." He holds up his Wheelie Breaker spell card.

"If that's what you remembered, then maybe you're a turbo duelist!"

"A turbo-what?"

"A turbo duelist! Duelist who duel while riding a duel runner! If you want a duel runner, you can ask Yusei. He can help you out."

"Hey, what's that?! You have a speed spell card?! How did you get such a thing?!" Both Jason and Rally spun around to see Blitz a few feet behind them.

"Say, Blitz… if Jason has a speed spell card… then maybe our new pal is a turbo duelist, too!"

"Well one card doesn't exactly prove it," Blitz said, "but it does make it pretty likely. When you think about it, it's kinda rare to meet someone with a speed spell. Now if Jason also had a duel runner," Blitz lets out a small grin. "then we'd certainly have a turbo duelist on our hands!"

"Yeah, I see what you mean. So, Jason, do you remember where your duel runner is?"

"Well, it wasn't with me when I woke up," Jason said, "so someone must've taken it. I think it's long gone by now. Other than that, I have no idea what exactly this duel runner of mine looks like."

"Amnesia is really a downer, huh?" Blitz pointed out. "But hey, aren't the only turbo duelists around here either Yusei or Sector Security?" after a short pause, he came up with an idea. "Wait a second! Then doesn't that mean that Jason Hutchins must have come from New Domino City!?"

"Really?" Jason cuts in. "Do you really think I came from some city?"

"Oh, yeah! That's gotta be right!" Rally said. "So maybe going into Domino will make the amnesia go away?"

"But if it's far away, do I have to hitch a ride or something?"

"It's going to require a duel runner." Blitz said. "So maybe we can make you one when Yusei comes back later."

"Good idea!" Rally agrees, "If everyone pitches in, then we're sure to make one in time!"

* * *

A few days later, after some complex labor and a few adjustments, Jason, along with Rally, Yusei, Blitz, Tank and Nervin were able to finish Jason's own duel runner. The frame was very standard, from a very recent model year(b). The other parts were made from scraps they found in the junkyard, but the runner itself works perfectly.

"Hey, Jason, can you wait here for a minute?" Yusei enters the shack and returns with a small engine and a tiny computer chip. "Here, put these in. It's a duel runner engine and acceleration chip. They're mine from a long time ago, but they still work. Consider it a thank you for helping us over the last few days."

"Thanks, Yusei." Jason took the item and installed them into his own duel runner. When he turned on the ignition, the runner came to life. "You're right, they do still work."

"Why don't you give it a test ride? If you go on the old highway, you should be alright. It's just ahead of the main road leading south."

"I'll start right away."

* * *

"Well, I guess this is the place." Following the directions given from Rally, he made it to an old highway entrance. Looking at the dusked sky, he figured he'd better get on the road as soon as possible. Putting on his helmet, Jason got on his duel runner and got on to the highway.

Unbeknownst our protagonist, a shadowy, feminine figure watches over him from a roadway just above the highway. She has long blonde hair that reaches to her back. And she wears a light-blue security uniform complete with a bright yellow scarf tucked in around her neck. Her ocean-blue eyes just showed a completely annoyed expression. "Just where do you think you're going?" her southern voice said from her rosy lips.

Back at the highway, Jason slowly accelerates on his runner as he speeds through the old pavement. 'So far, so good,' he thought, 'I guess this new runner works well for me. But the question is, how do I get to the city if there's no road between them?'

Jason snaps out of his thoughts as a faint ring of police sirens invaded his ears. The noise got louder as he sees a pair of red and blue lights from his rear-view mirror. As the got closer he finds out that the sirens belong to another motorcycle, which looks like a police patrol bike. The driver is some sort of police officer, with blonde hair waving from behind her helmet. "Hey, you!" she shouted, "What's some satellite doing wandering around past curfew!? And most importantly, on a Duel Runner!?"

"Uh, oh," Jason said to himself, "It must be one of those Sector Security guys the others were telling me about. I've got to get out of here fast." Jason revs up his runner and manages to outrun her a bit.

"Why, that little…" the security officer growled to herself, "…Just who does this punk think he is?" Revving up her own runner, she manages to catch up to Jason. "I guess a satellite like you is to dumb to realize you're messin' with Sector Security!" the officer told him as she and Jason met side by side. "Look, I'm in a good mood today and I don't want it to be ruined just because you satellites don't know your place. So let's make a little deal: let's have a Turbo Duel and if you win I'll let you go for now. But if you lose… then I'll haul you straight into custody! So what's it gonna be, satellite?"

After a few moments glaring at the visor over Jason's face, the women cracked a smile on her face. "Oh, that's right, I completely forgot. You satellites can't carry card. So, uh, since you don't have a deck to duel with, I guess I win by default! Now pull over right now!"

But when she was about to charge to the side of the vehicle, Jason swerved back, almost causing the officer to lose her balance. That is when Jason pulls out his Speed World spell card and showed it to her. "I guess this doesn't make me a satellite." He said.

'How did he get his hands on a card like that!?' the officer thought, 'He couldn't be a turbo duelist, so he must've stole that from somewhere. But still…' "Alright, fine." Both motorists skied to a stop, side by side. "It's been a while since I used my own turbo deck. Let's get started. I'll start things up by activating the Speed World Field Spell!" When the officer pushed a button on her patrol bike, a computer's female voice came to life.

**"DUEL MODE ENGAGED; AUTO PILOT STANDING BY."**

"Wow, nice runner!" Jason commented the officer. "Let's see how mine turns out. Duel mode, engage!" He slips his field spell into a slot below the runner's monitor. "Auto-pilot, standby!" a bluish-colored aura shot out from either runner, enveloping the field and sky with a cool neon glow.

"Do you think a satellite like you has a chance against a Sector Security officer?!" the officer said with a smug look on her face. "This oughta be a fun little break." At that moment, both drivers stepped on their accelerators as they sped through the highway. "It's time to show you what happens to you lawbreakers when Sector Security Officer Justine Altman comes for you!"

"_LET'S RIDE!!!_"

* * *

(1) Speed World-

When you activate a Spell Card, other than a "Speed Spell", you take 2000 damage. During each player's Standby Phase, place 1 Speed Counter on this card (max 12). When you take damage, remove Speed Counters from this card for each multiple of 1000 damage taken.

(2) Speed Spell-Wheelie Breaker-

This card can be activated by removing 8 of your Speed Counters. Destroy all the face-up monsters on your opponent's side of the field.

(3) Bonds- This is a special OC card i made up based on the first 5Ds japanese opening. If you can think of any effects for it, you can send them to me via e-mail or review.

(a) _("A moment ago I felt like I caught that french disease that makes things happen to you twice(a)," Jason said,)_- Deja Vu, if you hadn't figured it out. A little 'My Name is Earl' reference.

(b) If you played the yugioh: stardust accelerator game on the DS, you would know it's an Alpha Frame I type of duel runner.


	6. Duel Terminal: Round 1

disclaimer: don't own yugioh

* * *

"Uh, oh," Jason said to himself, "It must be one of those Sector Security guys the others were telling me about. I've got to get out of here fast." Jason revs up his runner and manages to outrun her a bit.

"Why, that little…" the security officer growled to herself, "…Just who does this punk think he is?" Revving up her own runner, she manages to catch up to Jason. "I guess a satellite like you is to dumb to realize you're messin' with Sector Security!" the officer told him as she and Jason met side by side. "Look, I'm in a good mood today and I don't want it to be ruined just because you satellites don't know your place. So let's make a little deal: let's have a Turbo Duel and if you win I'll let you go for now. But if you lose… then I'll haul you straight into custody! So what's it gonna be, satellite?"

After a few moments glaring at the visor over Jason's face, the women cracked a smile on her face. "Oh, that's right, I completely forgot. You satellites can't carry card. So, uh, since you don't have a deck to duel with, I guess I win by default! Now pull over right now!"

But when she was about to charge to the side of the vehicle, Jason swerved back, almost causing the officer to lose her balance. That is when Jason pulls out his Speed World spell card and showed it to her. "I guess this doesn't make me a satellite." He said.

'How did he get his hands on a card like that!?' the officer thought, 'He couldn't be a turbo duelist, so he must've stole that from somewhere. But still…' "Alright, fine." Both motorists skied to a stop, side by side. "It's been a while since I used my own turbo deck. Let's get started. I'll start things up by activating the Speed World Field Spell!" When the officer pushed a button on her patrol bike, a computer's female voice came to life.

**"DUEL MODE ENGAGED; AUTO PILOT STANDING BY."**

"Wow, nice runner!" Jason commented the officer. "Let's see how mine turns out. Duel mode, engage!" He slips his field spell into a slot below the runner's monitor. "Auto-pilot, standby!" a bluish-colored aura shot out from either runner, enveloping the field and sky with a cool neon glow.

"Do you think a satellite like you has a chance against a Sector Security officer?!" the officer said with a smug look on her face. "This oughta be a fun little break." At that moment, both drivers stepped on their accelerators as they sped through the highway. "It's time to show you what happens to you lawbreakers when Sector Security Officer Justine Altman comes for you!"

"_LET'S RIDE!!!_"

* * *

**Old Domino City... Now a run-down junk town known as the Satellite**.

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces**. **It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 5: Duel Terminal-Round 1**

**Hot Pursuit: Genex vs. The Allies of Justice**

"Ladies first, Satellite!" Justine insists as she draws her sixth card.

**Jason: 4000 (1)**

**Justine: 4000 (1)**

"For my first move, I'll be playing the (3)Ally of Justice: Blind Sucker (1600/1200)!" From out of a blue portal, a red capsule-like machine with four spider-like legs a pair of giant shoulder-mounted cannons appeared in front of Justine's runner. "That'll do for now."

"It's my turn," Jason drew, "And I'll summon (1)Genex Undine (1200/600) in defense mode." Jason called out what appears to be a female mechanoid containing some sort of blue liquid from its transparent appendages. "Then Undine's special ability activates. Whenever she's normally summoned, I can discard a water monster from my deck to add a Genex Controller card to my hand." Two cards popped partially out of his wrist/deck, one to send to the graveyard, and the other he added to his hand. "Then I'll set one card face-down and end." Three cards appeared around Jason's runner.

"Defending with a weak monster? That was very disappointing. But then again…" Justine drew, "…what else to expect from a satellite? (4)Ally of Justice: Thousand Arms!" The monster she called out looks like a mechanical warrior with a red X on its torso. It wields many blades on itself. "Blind Sucker, blast that satellite's puny little monster!" Its cannons charged up and fired at undine but…

"I activate my trap card: Genex Mirror Shield!" A large transparent shield materializes in front of Undine. "With this card activated, it can protect my monster from your attack and redirect it to destroy all of yours!" Blind's cannon blast bounced back and obliterated both Blind Sucker and Thousand Arms.

"Beginner's luck," Justine growled, ending her turn.

"Well that must make me a lucky guy. It's my turn!" Jason drew.

**Jason: 4000 (4)**

**Justine: 4000 (4)**

"Since I have at least two speed counters, I can activate the speed spell, Double Summon. It lets me summon an extra monster this turn. And next I'll play sort of a favorite card of mine, my Genex Controller!" Jason's small mechanical robot appeared next to Undine. "And since I have Controller out, I can summon this guy without a monster release! Say hello to Genex Heat!" Heat was called out between Controller and Undine. "It's time for a little synchro summon! It's show time, Controller!" Both Controller and Undine flew to the sky going through the same procedure as Thermal and Geo Genex. When the light tunnel dimmed, a new monster appeared. A blue, female-figured mecha took place. It had wings with water propellers on them, and wields a spear with a container of water at the base, releasing a blue liquid for a blade. "(2)Hydro Genex (2300/1800), Accelerate!"

'This guy's got not only Genex-series cards, but the synchro monsters, too?!' Justine thought to herself, 'He's obviously got Thief written all over him!!!"

"Next up, I'll play my second face-down…" Jason pushes a button on his duel runner. "Go, Energy Transfer! By releasing one of my Genex monsters, I can increase the ATK and DEF power of another Genex by the same power of the released monster. So by releasing Genex Heat…" When Heat disappears, Hydro is surrounded by rings of fire, boiling the liquids inside her body. "Hydro has more than enough power to win this duel!"

Hydro Genex: (4300/2100)

"4300 ATK points!!!" Justine shouts, "If that thing attacks, I'm done for!!!"

"That's the whole point!" Jason skis his duel runner so he's driving with both wheels side-by side. "Let's go! Hydro Genex, attack with Hydroelectric Tidal Wave!" With a swing of her sphere, Hydro summons forth a giant wave of water, that washes through Justine's patrol bike.

**Jason: 4000 (4)**

**Justine: 0 (0)**

With her life points at zero, her runner instantly shuts down, releasing clouds of exhaust from the frame. Her runner was now stopped in its place. "Thanks for the match," Jason grins and waves at Justine as he rode off under the moonlight. "See ya next duel!"

Justine on the other hand was furious. She threw her clear over the road and stomps of her duel runner, kicking the side with her boot. "You scumbag!" she screamed in the moonlit sky. We'll meet again next time! And when we do, you're gonna wish you never messed with 'Justice'! MARK MY WORDS!!!"

**

* * *

**

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Genex Undine**

******Stats:** [Aqua/Effect] LV3 ATK/1200 DEF/ 600  
**Attribute:** Water  
**Effect:** When this card is Normal Summoned, you can send 1 WATER monster from your Deck to your Graveyard to add 1 "Genex Controller" from your Deck to your hand.

**(2) Hydro Genex**

******Stats:** [Machine/Synchro/Effect] LV6 ATK/2300 DEF/1800  
**Attribute:** Water

**Synchro Requirements:** "Genex Controller" + 1 or more WATER Non-Tuner monsters

**  
Effect: If this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard, gains Life Points equal to the ATK of the destroyed monster.**

**(3) Ally of Justice - Blind Sucker**

******Stats:** [Machine/Effect] LV4 ATK/1600 DEF/1200  
**Attribute:** Dark  
**Effect:** The effects of LIGHT monsters that battle this card are negated.

**(4) Ally of Justice - Thousand Arms  
****Stats:** [Machine/Effect] LV4 ATK/1700 DEF/ 0  
**Attribute:** Dark  
**Effect:** This card can attack each face-up LIGHT monster your opponent controls once each. If this card battles a Non-LIGHT monster, destroy this card after damage calculation.

Author's note: I found another OC canadate. check it out:

name: isis kaiba (i'm kinda questioning her relations. Sorry, izanagi.)

description: current president of kaiba corp after seto passed away 4 years ago. she has her grandfather's exact personality. she uses a modified version of her grandfather's deck.  
favorite card:

Blue Eyes Divine Dragon

[Dragon/Synchro/Effect] LV8 ATK/3000 DEF/2500  
**Attribute:** Light  
**Synchro Requirements:** 1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters.  
**Effect: **This card's name is treated as "Blue-Eyes White Dragon" while face-up on the field and in your graveyard.

she uses a modified version of a duel disk.  
Duel Runner: has a blue eyes theme.


	7. Duel Terminal: Round 2

"Let's go! Hydro Genex, attack with Hydroelectric Tidal Wave!" With a swing of her sphere, Hydro summons forth a giant wave of water, that washes through Justine's patrol bike.

**Jason: 4000 (4)**

**Justine: 0 (0)**

With her life points at zero, her runner instantly shuts down, releasing clouds of exhaust from the frame. Her runner was now stopped in its place. "Thanks for the match," Jason grins and waves at Justine as he rode off under the moonlight. "See ya next duel!"

Justine on the other hand was furious. She threw her clear over the road and stomps of her duel runner, kicking the side with her boot. "You scumbag!" she screamed in the moonlit sky. We'll meet again next time! And when we do, you're gonna wish you never messed with 'Justice'! MARK MY WORDS!!!"

* * *

**Old Domino City... Now a run-down junk town known as the Satallite**.

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces**. **It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 4: Duel Termonal-Round 2**

**Rematch: The Allies' True Power**

Later that night, after that little distraction, Jason rode his duel runner down the abondoned highway. 'It looks like this new runner went alright,' he thought as he glared at the empty darkness in front of him, despite the full moon above him. 'I guess I should go back home and see if the others can help me find a pair of headlights for this thing.' When he got to the subway, he can see Yusei coming from the other side, pushing his own runner beside him. When Jason parked at the corner, he can hear voices insine the small shack. When he got up on the upper floor, he could see the others watching two people on the computer screen. One was a man with a ret tux and a wierd hairstyle. The other man was taller, has blonde hair and wears a white jacket with spikes on the shoulders. _"Mr. atlas, can we get a word?"_ the man in the tux asked, _"Ever since you honored the scene with your first duel runner, the competition hasn't been able to keep up. Is it the power in yor ride that has catapulted you to the number one ranking in the world?"_

The man he called "Mr. Atlas" snatches the mic from the M.C. and announces to all the viewers: _"Let's get this straight! It's not the power of the runner; it's the rider! I'll take on anyone on any ride and i'll still be victorious! Any more questions?"_

_"One more: Do you have anything to say to those who dream of one day challenging you?"_When Yusei ascended to the concrete platform floor with his runner he twists the engine handle, which lets out a roaring sound from the engine letting the others know he was here. "Oh, uh, hey, Yusei!" Blitz greets.

_"Yes. Bring, it,--"_That's when the turned off the monitor.

"Sorry 'bout that," Tank said, "We wanted to watch the duel somewhere else, Yuse, honest. But the cable we rigged couldn't stretch any further."

"Jack was amazing as always." Nervin added.

Blitz hushes them. "Nervin, zipit, would'ya?!"

"What? What'd I say, Blitz?"

"We don't wanna hear about how amazing Jack Atlas was!"

"Oh. sorry."

"Only one person should be sorry." Yusei said as he tinkers with his duel runner.

"Right," Blitz said. "Jack still owes you for what he did."

"Got that right"

"So, where you been, Yuse?" Tank asks.

"The tunnels, testing a new acceleration chip."

After a short pause..."So, are you gonna tell us if the new chip worked out, or what?"

"Duh, Tank, does it look like it worked?" Blitz answered.

"I guess not. although, hey, your other runner looked great on TV--"

"Tank!"

Tank turned to Blitz in his chair. "Just trying to make our friend fell better is all! That is Yusei's Duel Runner. I mean, if it weren't for Jack double-crossing Yuse and stealing His ride, Yuse would have been given that interview. Well, cause Jack got all famous with Yuse's Runner, all the fame, Fortune, and Glory are Jack's Now."

"Tank!!!"

"What?"

At that moment, someone came downstairs to the subway where Yusei, Jason and the others are at. "Yusei! Hey, Yusei, are you down here?!" Yusei looked up from his runner to see Rally around the corner, catching his breath.

"In here, Rally," Jason greeted." What's up?"

"Wait untl you see what I got for Yusei!" Rally hurried to said person and reached into his coat pocket.

"Uh, why do I have a bad feeling about all of this?" Nervin asks in concern.

"'Cause you always have bad feelings." Blitz retorted.

When Rally pulled out of his pocket, he held a silver-chromed computer chip. "Check it out: the Skylon-30 acceleration chip!"

"That's a Skylon?" Nervin glanced at the chip. "Aren't those things incredibly expensive?"

"It looks like it's never even been used." Blitz gripped Rally's hand to take a better look at it. "Don't tell me you stole this?"

"I didn't steal nothing!" Rally yanked his wrist back, "It was just laying on the ground in broad daylight. Maybe someone dropped it."

Blitz looked at the rest of the group, who shared the same puzzled look, then back to Rally. "Rally, you shouldn't have taken what don't belong to ya!"

"You know how things are here: no one leaves nothing just lying around." Tank assisted.

"If _they_ saw you," Nervin added, touching a mark on his cheek. "They'll track us down and mark us all."

"Easy, Nervin." Yusei said as he walked up to Rally. "Rally, let me see that." When he gave Yusei the chip, he nodded, "This is just what I needed."

"You can't use that, Yuse." Nervin insisted.

"You gotta make Rally take it back." Blitz added.

"I knew you'd like it! I knew it! Will it make you go any faster?"

"Absolutely." Yusei inserted the chip onto the runner's motherboard.

"Well, then," Tank said, "maybe he shouldn't return it--"

"Tank!!" Blitz shouted.

"What?!"

"We know how you feel, Yuse, but I think it's time to bury the past, move on on and forget about Jack Atlas." Nervin tries to console him.

"But Jack also took Yusei's best card! Remember, Nervin?!" Rally exclaimed.

"And you remember that Jack's in the city and the people over there don't take too kindly from those of us from the Satallite."

"Yeah, and?! In case you forgot, sometimes you gotta stand up for yourself!"

Nervin looked up to Yusei." Yusei, us satallites should just stay put."

"Jack didn't stay," Yusei counters, "so why should I?"

"East, bro. Don't waste your freedom for some wheels and a card." Blitz said. "I think Nerv's right; it's time to put the past in the past.

After a few beeps and clicks, Yusei reached to fiddle with one of the hand pedals. With one twist, the engine let out a mighty roar that echoed throughout the subway. Yusei patted his runner, knowing that he just got just the speed he needed.

"Whoa, now that's what I called power." Jason thought aloud.

Rally took Yusei's helmet to give to him. "Take it out for a spin. Let's see what it can do." Suddenly, a bright barrage of lights illuminated through the long and giant crack of the subway celing. Sounds of a helecopter can be heard too.

"What's that?!" Jason exclaimed.

"It's Sector Security!" Nervin answered.

"Identification Number: AWX86007!" an officer anounced from the helecopter via megaphone. "Yor are in violation of stolen property! Escape is not an option; we have you surrounded!" The gang all looked at Rally, who looked down on the ground.

Blitz raised a fist at him. "Look what you did!--"

"I didn't do nothin'!" Rally lifted the helmet to his face as if to shield himself. "Blitz, I promise I didn't steal any thing! It's like I said before: it was just lying there and nobody was around!"

"That doesn't matter now!"

Yusei hurries over to his laptop. "It's gonna be alright."

"So what are we gonna do now?" Jason asks.

"There's nothing we can do!" Tank answered. "That mark Rally has on his face is like a homing device; it sends a signal to Security!"

"I got that covered." After Yusei taps on a few keys on his computer, he activated a jammong program, which sent EM waves to compromise with the signal. "I bought you guys a couple of minutes." he said as he mounts onto his duel runner.

"Where'd you think you're going?" Blitz asked.

"You guys take the east tunnel." Yusei lowered the visor on his helmet. "I'm gonna take this chip out for a test drive!"

"Hold on, Yusei." Jason lept off the platform, put on his helmet and got onto his own runner. "I'm coming with you. You might need some backup."

"Alright, just stay close, and don't separate, no matter what." With that, they reved up thier runners and made a dash for it.

"You heard the man! Let's bolt!" Nervin led the others out of the subway.

Riding up the stairs, the two D-wheelers raced from the subway entrance and raced through the main street. But they didn't go unnoticed. From a distance, two security officers spotted Yusei and Jason. "This intel was perfect. Altman, call Command Central." One said to his partner beside him.

Justine Altman, the woman from our last chapter, pressed a button on her helmet, speaking through its intercom. "Altman to Central! The prize is in our sights! Lock on to our signal!" The two patrolers chaced after the two fugitives, along with a security car and a helecopter to aid them. It didn't take them long when the reached the highway. The chopper shown its spotlight onto Yusei and Jason making sure they don't leave it.

'Man, I didn't think they'd be on us this quick!' Yusei thought.

"You on the runners! Pull over!" One of the patrolers said. "It's no use trying to escape!" The securities pusued the fugutives to a nearby factory. Once there, Yusei and Jason turned to the nearest corner, and skied to a halt, with the patrollers and car following suit. The patrolers dismounted from thier bikes and one of then lifted his visor, which revealed a a man with toned skin and thick eyebrows. "Heh, remember me, Yusei? It's been a while since the center. I'll thank Jack for setting up this reunion."

When Justine took a hard look at the two D-wheelers, she was surprised to see who the other one was beside Yusei. "I can't believe it! It's you!"

"You know these punks, Altman?"

"No, but I caught the one on that old vintage duel runner on the old highway!" Justine pointed to Jason.

"I'm sorry," Jason asked, "but do I know you from some where?" That's when Justine fell over.

"Ugh! You gotta be kidding me!" Justine took off her helmet and thumbed herself. "Take a good look. And then tell me to my face you still don't know who I am?!"

"Umm..." Jason wandered a bit. "I don't think I know you at all."

"Justine Altman, from the highway?"

"Sorry, but nothing seems to ring a bell." Justine fell over again. "Wait, are you the one who uses Ally of Justice cards?"

"Finally! You managed to put the pieces together! I told you I'd brisk you the next time I saw your face! It looks like you're gonna get what's coming to ya!"

"Looks like you two have some bad blood." The other officer said to Justine, then turned back to Yusei, "As I was saying, Jack said that with the right bait, Rally would lead us right to you. I knew we should've locked you up when you were a kid. Looks like I'll finally get my wish. And with you and Rally off to the Facility, Jack will have one less thing to worry about. Now tell me, are you gonna make this easy and come along quietly?"

"I will..." Yusei answered, "...If you can beat us."

The officer just laughed as if he was laughing at a joke. "I see you still think you can out-duel Sector Security. It's too bad the rules say you Satallites can't carry cards."

Jason held up his dueling deck. "Well, you know what the saying goes; rules are made to be broken." He inserted it into a slot mounted on his wrist.

Yusei followed suit. "There'll be two one-on-one duels, you verses me, and Jason verses Altman. And if we both win, Rally, Jason and I are free to go, no questions asked, Trudge." That's when another officer intervened...

"The law does not negotiate with..."

But was stopped by the officer named Trudge. "And what's in it for me and Altman if we accept your proposal?"

"But Article 4-B clearly states that..."

"Well allow me to clearly state this," Justine put the third officer in a tight headlock. "Just return to Command Central. This shouldn't take long."

"But..."

Justine tightened her headlock. "Do it!" she growled, "Or would you rather I convince the captain to put you on mall patrol?" Knowing not to make her angry, the officer has no choice but to agree with Justine. As he rubbed the bruis on his neck from her chokehold, he entered the car and drove off. Now all that's left is Yusei, Trudge, Jason and Justine. "So What happens if I win this duel" Trudge asked.

"Then I'll tell them that it was me who stole the chip, and I tried to fled the scene, but I couldn't get away." Yusei said. "Something like that would promote you to 'Sargeant'."

"And I'll turn myself in to Officer Altman if I lose against her." Jason added. "I'll forfeit my deck and my duel runner without hesitation."

"That's perfect," Justine agreed, "That'll give me the chance to bash you around afterwards!" She got on her duel runner along with trudge. "Let's duel!"

Moments later, all four duelist stand side-by-side. Trudge ignitiates the auto pilot. "Alright, here we go. I'll start by playing the Speed World field spell." Trudge pressed a button on his runner, followed by Yusei and Justine, while Jason slipped the said card into a slot on his runner. Then the other three runners' voice activated.

**"DUEL MODE ENGAGED; AUTO PILOT STANDING BY."** A bluish-colored aura shot out from either runner, enveloping the field and sky with a cool glow.

_"LET'S RIDE!!!" _They shouted. As they raced through the factory, they each separated from either corner and split into two teams: Yusei vs. Trudge, and Jason vs. Justine.

"Like I said before, ladies first!" Justine drew.

**Jason: 4000 (1)**

**Justine: 4000 (1)**

"It's time to show you what my Allies of Justice are made of! And I'll start by playing (1)Ally Bomb (400/300) in defense mode!" A spherical orb appears on the field. It has many craters on it and has a violet-colored core glowing in the center. "Next I place two cards face-down and end my turn." Two set cards appear on either side of her runner. "Let's see if you can guess what I got in store for you?'

"I guess we'll find out right now. I draw!" Jason said. "After setting one card face-down, I summon the monster Genex Undine (1200/600) in attack mode." A blue feminine machine appears in front of Jason. "Now attack Ally Bomb!" Undine dashed towards the orb, and just after it exploded from her attack, both Undine and Jason's face-down exploded. "What just happened just now?!"

"It's all thanks to you, Satallite!" Justine insulted. "Whenever Ally Bomb gets destroyed by a Light-Attribute monster, it destroy two cards to return the favor. An eye for an eye!"

"But Undine's a Water monster! It shouldn't have triggered that thing's effect!"

"That's when you're wrong!" Justine pointed to one of her set cards, which is now face-up. "Before you attacked, I activated the DNA Transplant trap card! It lets me select a monster attribute, and all monsters are the field are treated as that same attribube."

"So you used DNA Transplant to change all monsters to Light-Attribute. That's why Undine's attack triggered that bomb's effect. And I bet that entire deck of yours has monsters that work in favor with that trap card."

"For a Satallite, you're pretty smart." Justine complimented. "The Allies of Justice can counter any Light monster, especially Seto Kaiba's Blue-Eyes White Dragon and Harold Kumara's(a) Wingweaver. So thanks to you, you've left yourself wide open!" She drew her next card. "But first I'll activate my second trap: Full Throttle!" her second face-down flipped up. I just drew a card, so it's still my Draw Phase. During my Standby Phase, the number of speed counters I gain by one! And since it's a Continuous Trap, I can out-run you each turn!"

**Jason: 4000 (3)**

**Justine: 4000 (4)**

"So with my speed counter at 4, I can activate a speed spell from my hand: Summon Speeder! And It lets me special summon a level 4 or lower monster from my hand; so I'll play the Ally of Justice-Thousand Arms." A machine carrying many blades is summoned. "And next I'll release Thousand Arms so I can advance summon (2)Ally Mind (1800/1400)!" In Thousand Arm's place came a bigger machine. It appears to be a pod with steel tentacles on it. "And that's not all..." Justine discards a card from her hand to a slot for her graveyard. "I discard (3)Ally of Justice-Unlimiter (600/200) to double Ally Mind's attack power!"

Ally Mind: (3600/1400)

"Now, attack! With Nebula Blaster!" Ally's frontal orb glowed a bright violet aura and blasted at Jason, taking almost all of his life points, as wel as all the counters he had.

**Jason: 400 (0)**

**Justine: 4000 (4)**

"Ha! I'm just one move away from breaking you down and turning you in! I've cut you off from using those Genex Synchro! No matter what monster you pull out next, my Allies are gonna keep on coming!" Justine slapped one card face-down, ending her turn. "You've got only one turn left, and the it's game over!"

With just 400 life points and no speed counters, Jason couldn't help but wonder how it will turn out. If he loses, he's going straight into custody, and he might not be able to recover from his memory loss. 'Oh, man. How am I gonna win this without my synchro monsters?!'

**To Be Continued...**

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

****

**(1)Ally Bomb**

**Stats:** [Machine/Tuner] LV2 ATK/ 400 DEF/ 300  
**Attribute:** Light  
**Effect:** If this card is destroyed by battle by a LIGHT monster and sent to the Graveyard, destroy 2 cards on the field.

**(2)Ally Mind**

**Stats:** [Machine/Tuner] LV5 ATK/1800 DEF/1400  
**Attribute:** Dark

**(3)Ally of Justice – Unlimiter**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] LV2 ATK/ 600 DEF/ 200  
**Attribute:** DARK  
**Translation:** You can Tribute this card to double the original ATK of 1 face up "Ally of Justice" monster you control until the End Phase.

* * *

(a) Harold Kumara is an OC character from the yugioh: avatar series by Phantom1


	8. Duel Terminal: Round 3

**disclaimer: don't own yugioh**

**Yusei: Now let's get up to speed with Yu-Gi-Oh 5D's!**

"I discard (3)Ally of Justice-Unlimiter (600/200) to double Ally Mind's attack power!"

Ally Mind: (3600/1400)

"Now, attack! With Nebula Blaster!" Ally's frontal orb glowed a bright violet aura and blasted at Jason, taking almost all of his life points, as wel as all the counters he had.

**Jason: 400 (0)**

**Justine: 4000 (4)**

"Ha! I'm just one move away from breaking you down and turning you in! I've cut you off from using those Genex Synchro! No matter what monster you pull out next, my Allies are gonna keep on coming!" Justine slapped one card face-down, ending her turn. "You've got only one turn left, and the it's game over!"

With just 400 life points and no speed counters, Jason couldn't help but wonder how it will turn out. If he loses, he's going straight into custody, and he might not be able to recover from his memory loss. 'Oh, man. How am I gonna win this without my synchro monsters?!'

* * *

**Old Domino City... Now a run-down junk town known as the Satallite**.

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces**. **It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 5: Duel Termonal-Round 3**

**Cornered: Ally Catastor's Nebula Banisher**

* * *

Things have become difficult preety fast for Jason. First he and his friend Yusei was cornered by two security patrollers for stealing an acceleration chip for Yusei's duel runner, and then they have to defeat them both to get them to drop the charges. But just when Jason seems pretty confident of himself, he was in for a surprise when his opponent, Justine Altman, surprises him by playing not only a trap card which allows her to gain extra speed every turn, but also unleashing the effects of her Allies of Justice, which all give her the upper hand when battling against Light-Attribute monster. And with her DNA Transplant changing every monster summoned into Light monsters, Justine has the upper hand. With just 400 life points to his name, and no cards on his field or any speed counters, Jason has to pull a fast draw to stay in the game.

"It looks like you've fallen behind hard and fast," Justine taunted, "Are you thinking of giving up?"

"Not a chance," Jason said. "It's my draw!"

**Jason: 400 (1)**

**Justine: 4000 (6)**

**'**I've got to find some way to turn this duel around,' he thought, 'But maybe this will help...' "I summon Genex Gaia(1000/1900) in defense position!" Jason's stone-encased mecha appears before him. "Then I place two card face-down and end my turn!"

"Leaving a monster in defense mode?! I guess you're so shell-shocked at how I took out over 3000 of your life point you decided to hide behind some stone shield." Justine insulted, "But that won't stop me. It's my move!"

**Jason: 400 (2)**

**Justine: 4000 (8)**

"It's time to show you what my Allies can really do! and I'll start by discarding two copies of (1) Silent Strider(300/700) from my hand!"

"Why did you do that?" Jason asks.

"Any amateur duelist knows that a Silent Strider downgrades a monster by one level when discarded from a player's han. Since I discarded two Silent Striders..."

"Then a monster can be downgraded by two--"

"That's right! Next I summon the Ally of Justice-Unlimiter(600/200)! Then I'll tune my Unlimiter with my Ally Mind to synchro summon the Ally of Justice-Catastor!" From the monster's synchro ring, Catastor appeared. It appears as a white shuttle with a golden crown with Ally Mind's orb in the middle as a head ordament. It's propped by 6 mechanical spider legs. "Catastor, attack his Gaia with Nebula Banisher!" Catastor fires a blue beam from its head ordament but...

"I activate my trap card!" Jason flips his reverse card. "With Geothermal Rampart, I can double the defense power of an Earth Genex monster that I have on the field, namely my Genex Gaia!"

Genex Gaia: (1000/3800)

"Do you think that a simple up grade can protect you from Catastor's attack?" Justine made her point when Catastor not only destroyed Jason's monster, but she didn't lose any life points.

"But how?!" Jason was shocked.

"That's Ally of Justice-Catastor's special ability: it can destroy the monster it battles with with out taking damage. Get it? No matter what monster you throw out to hide behind, my Catastor can always blow them away! Of course, if the monster it attacks is a Dark-Attribute, it would be another story."

'Aw man, that Catastor can just obliterate my monsters without breaking a sweat. I could use a Dark monster, but with that DNA Transplant, my monsters change to Light-Attribute the moment they're summoned. But that won't stop me.' But Jason wasn't too sure of himself. "It's my turn!"

**Jason: 400 (3)**

**Justine: 4000 (10)**

"First I'll summon (2) Genex Blast(1600/1300) the the field in attack mode!" A new Genex appeared, only this time it was green with a large fan for a body. "Next up, since I have at least two speed counters, I can activate the Speed Spell: High Speed Crash!"

"High Speed Crash? What does that do?"

"By destroying one of my own monsters, I can destroy one card you have on the field! It's like you said: an eye for an eye!" Simultaneously, both Blast and Catastor were destroyed in a huge explosion.

"No! My Catastor!"

"But I'm not stopping there. Next, I play my face down trap, Call of the Haunting to bring back Genex Blast!" Jason's green robot revives by his side. "And when he's special summoned, his special ability activate, letting me add a Dark machine-type tuner monster to my hand." Jason searches his deck for the card he needed and placed it in his hand, shuffling his deck afterwards. "Next I play the speed spell Double Summon, so I can summon Genex Controller from my hand!" Controller the robot shows up next to Blast. "Since you have no monsters in play, Genex and Blast can attack you directly!" Both monsters charged at Justine, taking more that half of her life points and two of her spell counters.

**Jason: 400 (3)**

**Justine: 1000 (8)**

"It's not over yet, Satallite." Justine growled.

"You're right. I haven't set my face-down yet." Jason placed his last card on his runner, ending his turn.

"You've asked fror it!" Justine drew.

**Jason: 400 (4)**

**Justine: 1000 (10)**

"Since I have 10 speed counters, I can remove them all in exchange to play the Monster Reborn speed spell!"

"That lets you revive a monster from either player's graveyard!"

"And I'm gonna use it to bring back my Ally of Justice-Catastor!" And just like that, Catastor is revived on the 'Justice Patroller's' side. "now I can get another chance to get you back for ditching me back at the highway! Go, Nebula Banisher!" Catastor fires his banisher blast and it would've connected if...

"I activate my trap card Genex Mirror Shield! When an Genex is attacked, that attack is reflected back at its owner!" A transparant shield causes the blast to bounce back at Catastor, resulting in it's destruction.

"That's not fair!" Justine complained, "I was just so far ahead! I could've won if it weren't for those meddling Genex and that Mirror Shield!"

"All's fair in love and dueling." Jason drew, "And this duel has just come to a close! Cause' I'm gonna tune my Genex Blast with my Controller!" And from the tunnel of synchro summoning comes a new mecha. It looks like Genex Blast, but with larger and more posable appendages. "(3) Wind Farm Genex(2000/1600), Accelerate!"

"But with that kind of attack power..."

"That's right! This game is over! Wind Farm Genex, end this! Go, Windmill Hurricane!" Wind Farm's fan propelled a extremely high speeds, creating a whirlwind that flew anc crashed into Justine's life points.

Jason: 400 (4)

Justine: 0 (8)

Once again, her runner shut down on her. She became very peeved at the results. "How could I've been careless twice?" she thought aloud, "I could I lose to a Satallite and his trash of a dueling deck."

"I'll tell you how,"Jason stopped a few feet in front of his beaten opponent, with one foot on the ground. "To quote a certain turbo-dueling friend of mine, Any card, so long as it exists, has the potential to be useful. Someone who would reject his cards by calling them "trash" doesn't deserve to call himself a duelist. So next time you might wanna think twice before underestimating us 'Satallites' and our decks. Because what you see as weakness is what truly makes us strong."

"You've just took the words right out of my mouth." Jason turns to see Yusei across from her. He must have won against that Trudge character. Before he joined Yusei to go home, he gave Justine pointed a peace sign at her.

"If you want another rematch, just come looking for me. I'll be around." With a twist of his handle, Jason and Yusei drove in moonlight. "See ya' next duel!" he called out.

As for Justine, she didn't really take her loss pretty lightly. "I'll come looking for you, ya' Sattalite Scum," Justine growled between her teeth.

**Later...**

Yusei and Jason were standing at the edge of the highway, watching the lights of the distant city of New Domino sparkle in the night sky.

"Hey, Jason," Yusei asks, "Are you sure you wanna come with me to New Domino City?"

"I have a gut-feeling that city holds all the answers I'm looking for. If I'm gonna find out who I really am, then New Domino City is my one-way ticket." Jason looks over towards Yusei, "What about you? Are you sure you wanna go there to face this Atlas guy?"

"I have to. Jack's abandoned us just for fame and fortune. I'm going not only to find out why he did it, but to get back my Stardust Dragon card." Both Yusei and Jason brought their glares back towards the city with the same thought: 'Get ready, Domino City; I'm coming for you.

* * *

**Jack: Let's say we kick this Jukebox into overdrive!**

Don't underestimate the dragon's tail.

What you throw away will make me faster, make me better.

Rev it, rev it, rev it up.

To turn it around, turn it around.

Rev it, rev it, rev it up.

To turn it around, turn it around.

'Cos this time speed is power.

And what you see as weakness makes us strong.

Rev it, rev it, rev it up.

To turn it around, turn it around.

Let's ride!

Rev it, rev it, rev it up.

To turn it around, turn it around.

Rev it, rev it, rev it up.

This time we can turn it back around.

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1)Silent Strider**

**Stats:**** [Insect/Effect] LV2 ATK/ 300 DEF/ 700  
****Type:**** Earth**

**Effect: You can send this card from your hand to the Graveyard to reduce the Level of 1 monster on the field by 1, until the End Phase.**

**(2)Genex Blast**

******Stats:** [Spellcaster/Effect] LV4 ATK/1600 DEF/1300  
**Type:** Wind

******Effect:** When this card is Special Summoned, you can add 1 DARK "Genex" monster from your Deck to your hand.

**(3)Wind Farm Genex**

******Stats:** [Machine/Synchro/Effect] LV7 ATK/2000 DEF/1600  
**Type:** Wind

******Synchro Requirements:** "Genex Controller" + 1 or more WIND non-Tuner Monsters

**Effect: This card gains 300 ATK for each face-down Spell and Trap Card on the field. You can send 1 card from your hand to the Graveyard to destroy 1 face-down Spell and Trap Card on the field.**

* * *

Jason: Now let's look what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5Ds:

**Rally: So are you guys gonna go for it tonight?**

**Yusei: Midnight tonight.**

**????: That's a pretty inpressive runner you got there.**

**Blitz: The runner's not for sale so beat it.**

**????: Or would you perfer I go topside and tell Sector Security that you're hiding a illegal duel runner down here?**

**Yusei: Why don't we duel for it?**

**Next time on Stardust Accelerator: Bug Trap**

**Tank: Don't do it, Yuse, please! This runner's the key to our--**

**Yusei: --future. That's why I have to do this.**


	9. Bug Trap

disclaimer: don't own yugioh

* * *

A few days went by after that affair with Sector Security. Yusei Fudo and Jason Hutchins are riding through the subway tunnel preparing for tonight's trip. But unlike Jason, who's occupied on the track, Yusei was lost in thought: 'You beat me once Jack, but I learned my lesson.'

(Flashback)

_One day, on the ruined streets of the Satallite, Yusei was in a duel with one of his best friends: Jack Atlas. Rally, Nervin, Tank and Blitz were there to cheer on Yusei. Yusei was behind with just his Junk Warrior on the field, with Jack using Mad Archfiend with one card set._

_"You'll never win this duel, Yusei!"_

_"You sure are sure of yourself!"_

_"Just sure..." Jack smirked, "...that I'm gonna beat you! Yusei, bring it on!"_

_"You got it, Jack! Junk Warrior, send him to the scrap heap!" But as Junk Warrior raises his gauntleted fist, he was ensnared by a swarm of omen-inducing chains. "What's that?!"_

_"It's my trap..." Jack reveals his set card, "...Shadow Spell! And with it, I'm gonna pun an end to you unbeaten streak, Yusei! Mad Archfiend, attack!" After crunching on a skull, Mad Archfiend's stomach spat out the shards, destroying Junk Warrior and taking the rest of Yusei's life points. Yusei was devastated._

_"How did I let that happen?!" Yusei fell to the ground and punched it._

_Not even Rally can believe it. he just experienced Yusei's first defeat. "Did he... just lose?"_

_"He did. And do you know why our friend just lost?" Jack walked over to his fallen rival, "Because his deck has no balance. And without balance, one cannot be a complete duelist. But you know that already, don't you, Yusei?_

* * *

**Old Domino City... Now a run-down junk town known as the Satellite**.

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces**. **It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 6:**

**Bug Trap  
**

**

* * *

**

**Meanwhile...**

Speaking of whom, high above the populate city of New Domino, who is looking through his window, on the very top of the highest building in a very large penthouse. is none other that Jack Atlas himself. 'Ah, now this is the view I was always meant to have, even if I did have to double-cross a few friends to get it,' he said in thought, 'Hmph, and to think that it was only a few years ago that I was dwelling amongst the losers and garbage of The Satallite. I'm glad that nightmare was over.' he take a look at the card he was holding in his right hand. 'Stardust Dragon; I wonder if Yusei still misses you?'

"Quite the view, isn't, Jack?" On the other side of the room, enters a man wearing a grey business suit, with a bird imprinted on the inner shirt. He has green-grey eyes and silver hair tied in a ponytail. His name is Rex Goodwin. "Still thinking about your days in The Satallite?"

"I'm done thinking about that dump, Goodwin." Jack scowls.

"That's good Jack. Because dwelling in the past may sometimes cost you your future, and we worked too hard to let that happen. Now shouldn't you be focusing on you match this evening..."

But before he can finish, Atlas tosses his card at his deck that was lying on a table a few feet from him, fitting perfectly in the center. "I'm plenty focused, Goodwin," Jack answered, "You don't have to worry about me dwelling in the past. Cause' if I had my way, The Satallite would've been destroyed years ago."

"I understand how you feel. But The Satallite plays a valuable role in our society. Everyone has been given a role in life. Those from The Satallite exist so that the chosen may prosper. They keep the city functioning by recycling what the chosen discard. Without The Satallite, New Domino City could not exist. Glamorous a role, it is not, but a necessary one for everyone's survival. But you know that already, don't you, Jack? How silly of me to give a history lesson to someone who experienced it first hand. Now your memories of that place where they belong; It's time for you to make new ones."

"You're right," But Jack looks at the strange markings on his right arm, which resembles a pair of wings. "But what if my past comes looking for me?"

**Meanwhile...**

Back at The Satallite, Yusei and Jason are still testing out their runners at the subway tunnel. As they near the subway station, they can see Rally holding out a stopwatch, so he can record the timings on their laps. When they reached their checkpoint, they skied to a halt.

"Guys, that's you best time yet!" Rally rushed over to the two D-Wheelers. "You think they're gonna be fast enough to get you both to New Domino City?"

"Well, they better be," Jason answered.

"I just know it's gonna work!"

"I hope you're right," Yusei said, "Time us again." And just like that, the revved once again across the tunnel.

**Meanwhile...back at New Domino...**

"Jack, you are a part of New Domino City now, and the only link you have to The Satallite is Yusei Fudo; and you can rest assure, that we're taking every precaution to keep that link buried."

**Later...at nightfall...**

The scene changes to the Satallite Recycle Center. There, we enter Tank, Nervin and Blitz.

"OK, Nervin, your turn."

"I'm thinking a cheeseburger with bacon and extra onion rings!"

"Whoa, don't forget the french fries and an extra-thick milkshake!"

"Ha-ha, good one!"

"Or lemonade!"

"Mmm, but nothing beats dipping hot french fries into a cold chocolate shake. It really brings out the flavor! Oh, I can dream about it! So guy, you think we'll ever taste a real cheeseburg--who-oha" But before Tank can finish his sentence, he fell onto the floor, flat on his face.

"Tank! What happened?!" Dropping their stuff on the spot, Blitz and Nervin rushed to helped thier fallen friend.

"Ugh...I fell."

"On the contrary; It's actually called 'Tripped'." The source of Tank's falling came from an outstretched leg, which came from a young man with blue hair, wearing a black jean jacket with an old necklace around his neck. The gut, whose name is Lenny, was companied by two other cohorts. One si a little more big-boned than Tank is, but other than that, he has brown hair and shades on. The other one has black hair in a weird hairdo. He has his right hand signaled out the letter L (L, for loser, I think).

"Feh, it looks like he scuffed up your shoe really bad. Whadaya think he should do about it?"

The guy with the "L" only responded by cackling.

"How bout' he buys me a new pair of kicks and we call it even?" Lenny insisted, "I wear a size: 11."

"You'll get nothing, ya got that?" Blitz complained, "Unless you want a bruise to match that mark on your face. It'd be an improvement."

"Grr, I'll show you an improvement!" Blitz biggest mistake was ticking off Lenny, especially when he was reminded of the criminal mark on his right cheek. And to prove his point, Lenny took a handful of Blitz's collar so he wouldn't get away; Blitz was regretting his word now.

"Uh, guy, a little help?!" But it was too late for Blitz when Lenny...

**_POW!!!_**

**Later...**

Back at the subway, Rally was busy tending his friends wounds, who just returned after that beating from the "Blue-Haired Bully". And Rally was putting the finishing touches on Blitz's injuries. "There, all better."

"Oh, really? Then can you please explain to me why it still hurts so much? I thought you knew what you were doing, Rally!" and just like before, he regretted what he just said. "Yeah, and I guess I did too when I stood up against that bully. Boy was I wrong; I mean, they just ran us over!"

"I know. I didn't even get a chance to get in the fetal position," Nervin said.

"And now I gotta buy some new shoes for that guy," Tank slunked.

"C'mon, guys, lighten up!" Rally said, ant looked towards the two D-wheelers. "Yusei and Jason just maxed out thier duel runners!"

"Yeah, like how maxed out?" Blitz asked.

"Enough to get the heck out of here," Jason answered.

"You should've seen them and thier runners speeding through the tunnels! It was like 'vroom!', then 'whish!', then 'shroom!'" Rally looked back at Jason and Yusei. "So are you guys gonna go for it tonight? You're gonna try and make it to Domino City?"

Yusei nodded.

"Uh, does anyone besides me have a bad feeling about all this?" Blitz asked.

"I do," Nervin answered sarcastically, "But that's not really saying much, because I have a bad feeling about everything."

"Yeah," Yusei said, "But don't worry, because I got it all planned out...I think."

**Meanwhile, at The Satallite's Sector Security office...**

"Hey, Unc', I know you're less than happy about those sattalites getting away, but..." From within the interiors of the Security Enforcer office, enters Security Officer Justine Altman, who is awaiting her next assignment, along with her partner, Officer Tetsu Trudge, either person holding a duel monsters deck in her/his hand. "is this new pursuit deck really neccesary? Cause I don't need any help chasing that satallite!"

"First off, despite me being your uncle, Officer Altman, while you're on duty you will address me as 'Captain'," Sitting from behind his desk, Justine's uncle, or rather, her 'Captain', was an old man with a flat-top of grey hair and a matching moustache. "And as for your ability to hold you own, I beg to differ; you see Trudge beside you?" Both the captain and Justine took a glance at said person. "If I had my way, I'd have him handing out parking tickets until he retires. These special pursuit decks would've gone to someone who goes by the book; but apparantly Mr. Jack Atlas thinks he deserves a second chance. And when Jack Atlas says 'do something', I do it."

"Well, I guess we couldn't blame him," Justine said with a smug look on her face, "I mean, he would've followed the rulebook if he knew he'd get bested by some satallite--"

"You're the one to talk, Altman!" Trudge exclaimed, "You got wasted the same way! But I guess it's what's to be expected from a rookie!"

"Look me dead in the eye ane say it to my face, Bushy-Brow--!!"

"That's enough out of both of you!" Captain shouted, "Trudge is right, Altman; you would've followed the rules yourself and tried to apprehend that satallite, but instead you insisted on challenging him and you lost. That's how he got away."

Justine looked down and bit her lip.

"Now i'm giving you one chance to redeem yourself, but after that, i'm assigning you to a different duty, and not for your benefit. Is that understood?"

"Yes, Captain." Justine said plainly.

"So what are my orders?" Trudge asks.

"Find Yusei and his duel runner and bring them in." Captain instructed. "There are some very powerful people who want him off the streets permanently."

"Understood, Captain," Trudge bowed.

"And just you remember: there are no third chances with Mr. Atlas. Am I making myself perfectly clear, Officer Trudge?"

"Yes, sir. He may have caught me off guard in our last duel but next time, I'll be ready," Trudge takes another look at his new cards. "And will he ever be surprised." He bowed again and left with Justine. "Thank you sir," he said, "You won't be dissapointed. When you lock onto the chip's homing signal, let me know."

**Meanwhile...**

"So what's this plan you think 'might' work, Yusei," Tank asked.

"Oh, it's gonna work, Tank!"

"Well, I hope you're right, Rally," Yusei said, "Cause' if everything falls into place, Stardust Dragon will be mine again, and we'll all be one step closer to leaving the Satallite."

"Yuse, are you sure that card's worth the risk?" Blitz asked, "I mean, do you really think that card's gonna make a difference?"

"Of corse it will." Tank said, "Don't you remember the feeling you had when you first saw it in action? Cause I'll never forget it!"

"Wait, you know what a 'Stardust Dragon' looks like?"

"You must've been out for a long time. It was two years ago, before we met you." Blitz said, "Stardust is a white dragon which emits tiny particles of light, at least that was what I remembered. If it wasn't for Jack stealing it and Yusei's first runner, we'd be out of the Satallite right now."

Jason looked at Yusei's runner, "You mean this isn't his only runner?"

"Nope," Tank said, "His first runner was faster and way more powerful!"

(Flashback)

Tank: Seeing that duel runner Yusei built from spare parts from the Recycling Center was amazing! And when Yuse started it up and showed us what it can do, it was like a whole new world opened up.

Nervin: Yeah, and then, when he first summoned his Stardust Dragon, I couldn't believe my eyes, or ears! I mean, you were screaming at the top of your lungs, Blitz.

Blitz: That's right. I lost my voice for a week after all that hollering. Too bad Jack took away our dreams.

(End flashback)

"Well, Yusei's about to get them back," Rally said, "Cause' with this new runner, Jack doesn't stand a chance!"

"Yeah!" Tank exclaimed, "What are we waiting for!?"

"Midnight, Tonight," Yusei said.

"Huh? Why?" Nervin asked, "What's at midnight?"

"The tiniest of opportunities." Yusei taps on some laptop keys and a simulation started playing. "Check this out, guys: See, the only way between The Satallite and New Domino City is this sewer pipeline here. Problem is, they flood it with trash 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. But once a month at midnight, they shut the syetem down to check the compressor pumps," he then points to a flashing object on the screen, "Then a maintenance hatch is automatically opened, and that's when Jason and I will get our chance to make it through."

"A sewer?" Nervin facefaulted, "That sounds... a bit unhigenic. The odors and fumes alone..."

"Remind us of you!"

(Cackling)

"Yeah, you stink like the garbage you recycle."

Yusei and Co. look back to see Lenny and his two co-horts entering the subway to thier shack. "How's the healing going?" he said as his flunkies laughed at his joke.

But Yusei just stared them down, unphased by thier taunts.

"Hey, you with the hair!" the sheded one growled at Yusei, "You think you're a tough guy?! Cause' I'll show you what tough is!" The guy with the finger just cackled.

That's a pretty impressive runner you got there." Lenny said as he looked at Yusei's duel runner and cracked his knuckles. "How much do you want for it?"

"The runner's not for sale, so beat it." Blitz averted.

"Well, if it's not for sale, how bout' you give it to me instead of the shoes we're here to collect?"

"That sounds like a pretty sweet deal to me." Shades Guy said as Finger Guy cackled.

"Or would you perfer I go topside and tell Sector Security that you're hiding a illegal duel runner down here?"

"Why don't we duel for it." Lenny looked towards Yusei, who said those very words.

"Huph, duel me, you might as well just hand it to me now, especially if you duel like your buddys here fight."

Jason walked besides Yusei, "Here's the stakes: If you win, yu can keep both our runners, as well as my dueling deck," Jason held out his cards, "But if Yusei wins, then you leave our subway there and then."

"Heh, two runners for the price of one? I like those odds."Lenny said as Shades Guy donned him his duel disk. "So, are you up for it?"

"Don't duel him, Yusei," Blitz averted.

"He's just a bully," Nervin added.

And bullies never learn," Yusei removes his deck from his wrist, placed the in a dack-holder on Yusei's bottom side, and replaces it with the one on his opposite side. "...unless you stand up to them."

"but what if you loose to him, Yuse?!" Blitz exclaims.

Yusei pressed a button on his runner and the computer voice activated: "_Disengaging duel disk." _the runner extracted the duel disk from itself as Yusei connected the disk to his left wrist. "We'll be fine, Blitz."

"Hmph, I think I'll change the color," Lenny said, imagining what to do whit the cycles he'd win.

"Don't do it, Yuse, please!" Tank prayed, "This runner's the key to our...our--"

"--Future," Yusei finished, "That's why I have to do this."

"Well your future's coming with me, so you better start making new plans for tomorrow." And with that, Lenny spat out a smug laugh, along with Shade's guy and Finger Guy. Seconds later, everyone got out of the way so Yusei and Lenny can battle. Yusei stared Lenny down while the later let out a smirk, untill...

"_Let's Duel!"_

**Yusei: 4000**

**Lenny: 4000**

"Your move," Yusei said.

"I can't wait to get my hands on those runners. Here goes!" Lenny drew, "I summon (1)Chainsaw Insect (2400/0) in attack mode!" A giant ant with giant chainsaw-like jaws appeared in front of him. Everyone jumped at how large it is.

"Whoa!" Tank exclaimed, "I've see big bugs down here, but nothing that big!"

"It is quite the arthropod, isn't it?" Nervin said.

"Yes it is!" Lenny slaps another card onto his disk. "And next i'm playing te spell: Retribution of the Antlion!" A giant sinkhole of sand started to form. I always knew there were bugs down here in these tunnels, but you gotta trust me when I say that you guys have'nt seen anything yet; cause' when this card's on the the field, the monster's controller gets hit with 800 points of damage when it's destroyed!"

"Oh, no," Tank said, "Yuse don't like bugs!"

"Yeah, ever since that roach nested in his ear, he freezes up if you just say the word 'Insect'." Nervin added, "I sure hope that doesn't throw him off his game."

"Don't worry, Nervin," Jason said, "I'll take more that entonophobia to distract him."

"C'mon, Yuse," Blitz shouted, "You can do this!"

"Scared of creepy crawlies, huh?" Lenny just heard thier little chat, "Hmph, well then this duel... will have you coming face-to face with your worst fears."

"You got him shaking in his boots, Boss!" Shades called out as Finger cackled.

"Not for long, though," Yusei drew, "Cause' i'm summoning my (2)Shield Warrior (800/1600) in defense mode!" A spearman with a giant shield knelt in a blue aura. "And next I place one card face-down." A reverse card appears behind Shield Warrior.

"Ha, you really are afraid!" Lenny abused, "Looks like you forgot how to attack!"

"I bet he don't even finish the duel!" Shades added as Finger cackled.

"Well ther's onle one way to find out," Lenny drew, "I summon (3)Pinch Hopper 1000/1200), in attack mode!" A giant green grasshopper appeared. "I see the fear in your eyes and it's only gonna get worse, cause' by sending a card to my graveyard, I can play Insect Costume," Lenny shot out the spell to show to his opponent, "And add a scarrier insect to my hand!" Shades cheered as Finger cackled as Lenny searched his deck for and insect monster, "This next move.." he said, "You should enjoy, cause now I have to destroy my Pinch Hopper."

"But if he destroys a monster..." Tank protested.

"Then won't his life points take a hit?" Jason finished.

As Hoppervanished, the sinkhole glowed and unleashed a ray of yellow light, which targeted straight for Lenny, taking out 800 of his life points.

**Yusei: 4000**

**Lenny: 3200**

"What just happened?!" Lenny exclaimed, "Did I--did I just attack myself?!"

Blitz facepalmed and facefaulted, "I think Bug-Boy forgot that he got his Antlion spell on the field."

"Huh?" Lenny looked at his disk and rubbed the back of his head, "Oh, yeah, that was all part of my plan. Cause' you see, by getting rid of pinch hopper, I can do this: I activate its special ability, and call out a creepier insect to the field to take its place, like my powerful (4) Metal-Armored Bug (2800/1500)!" The insect he summoned is larger than the others, and like its name sugests, its covers in a thich metal shell. "When Sector Security dumped me here in The Satallite, I thought I'd be spending the rest of my life sifting through the trash," Then he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "But your runners gonna get out of this dump and back to where I belong!"

"I think it's feeding time for your bugs, boss!" Shades said as Finger cackled.

"Whoa!" Tank exclamed.

"Hey, Yusei! Try imagining that bug as a soft, cuddly kitten!" Jason called out.

"Well, Jason," Nervin hindered, "It's gonna take quite the imagination, considering that kittens don't have claws like that."

"Well his imagination must be pretty good if he thinks he'll win," Lenny take Pinch hopper and (5)Insect Soldier from his graveyard slot, and stuffed them in his back pocket, this removing them from play. "And after this next move, your pal's gonna wish he never challenge me! I special summon (6)Doom Dozer (2800/2600)!" Lenny plays a giant pink centerpede in front of him.

"I bet your world's spinning round' and round' right now, isn't it? And it's gonna get more out of control! Chaisaw Insect, it's time to attack!" Revving it chainsaws, the giant ant crawled towards Yusei's Shield Warrior.

"Not so fast! I activate my trap card: Scrapiron Scarecrow!" Yusei's reverse card unleashed a rusty scarecrow, and as the insect chashed with it, sparks flew everywhere between the two. "And thanks to my trap card, you insect attack is repelled and my warrior's safe. Unfortunately i'm only allowed to use this trap card once per round," then scrapiron was set face-down again.

"Ha! Well, since your bug trap's all used up, let's see how you save yourself this time! Metal-Armored Bug, attack! Take out his Shield Warrior!" the colossal critter charged towards hus opponent and ran him over.

"So are you finished?"

"Oh so now you're a tough-guy?!" Lenny's antlion began to glow, "Well, my sell, Retribution of the Antlion's gonna soften you right up!" The sinkhole fired another beam, only this one was targeted as Yusei. He writhered in pain as it connected.

**Yusei: 3200**

**Lenny: 3200**

"And now Doom Dozer's gonna attack you into submission!" Dozer unleashes a giant pink blast and collided with yusei in a giant explosion.

"Oh, no, Yuse must mb to scared to fight back!" Blitz dreaded as he held Rally by the sholders.

"Them bugs are gonna squash him!" Shades said as Finger cackled.

As Yusei stands frozen and paralyzed, he wonders if he made a mistake accepting Lenny's challenge. If he doesn't do something soon, then he'll never be able to go to New Domino. 'If i'm gonna stop those insects, I gotta trust in the power of my cards.'

**Yusei: 3200**

**Lenny: 400**

"C'mon," Lenny shouts and raises a fist at Yusei, "Aren't you even gonna attack!?"

"How's this for an answer?" Yusei finally said after a long pause, "I summon out...(7)Speed Warrior (900/400)." A grey skating warrior with his face covered in a gas mask appears before Yusei. "And with it, I activate the spell: Double Summon, which means your bugs are in for double the trouble. Cause now I can call out another monster to the field. But 'ganging up' is something you bullies know all about, now isn't it? Those runners," Yusei holds up a monster card that has a picture of a small orange machine on it, "...are staying put. And (8)Junk Synchron's (1300/500) gonna make sure of it."

"Yeah, let's go, Yusei!" Rally cheered.

"Now with Junk Synchron and Speed Warrior finally on my field, I can synchro summon (9)Junk Warrior (2300/1300)!" As Junk Synchron revved the engin on his back, he transformed into a synchro tunnel which surrounded Speed Warrior. And then with a flash of light... "Junk Warrior, let's rev it up!" A larger blue warrior took place. It has a blue-chromed brass knuckle on his right arm.

"Oh no," Lenny was shocked, "With that kind of power, my insects don't stand a chance!"

"Don't worry, boss! He's still afraid! Just throw more of your bugs this way!" Shades called out at Finger cackled.

"I'm not afraid of anything when my Fighting Spirit equip spell card is in play!" as Yusei activated said card, Junk's gauntlet glowed with three rings on it. "See, for each monster you have on the field, my warrior gains 300 ATK points!"

Junk Warrior: (3200/1500)

"I knew Yuse can do it!" Tank said.

"Now it's time to exterminate those insects and save our runners!" Jason added.

"Oh, no," Lenny whined, "With all those extra attack points, my insect's are gonna be stop by that thing!"

"He can't take then all out, Boss!" Shades said as Finger cackled.

"And I don't have to, once I play the Continuous Spell: Domino Effect! So for eack monster I discard to the graveyard, one of your monsters is destroyed!"

"Aw, man! But I was so far ahead!"

"Junk Warrior, send his Chainsaw Insect to the scrapheap!" As Junk flew towards the giant ant, he punched hard and knocked it off-balance. "And now, by sending two cards to the gravyard, Domino Effect activates!" Yusei discards 2 monsrers to his grave slot. "Your bugs, are about to fall!" And after that, Chainsaw stumbled and tumbled on Doom Dozer, which stumbled on Metat-Armor, destroying them all."

**Yusei: 3200**

**Lenny: 2400**

"You and your buddys came down here looking to intimidate us, threaten us and push us around. Well, next time you might wanna think twice before messing with my pals, cause we're gonna stand by each other through thick-and-thin!"

"Yeah, you tell that New-Domino-City-Cast-Off the he'd better watct it the next time he come down here!" Rally shouts.

"Yeah, cause' we're not gonna stand for anymore of his bullying tactics," Jason added, "Not now, and not ever!"

"You fought a good duel," Yusei said to Lenny, "But our runners are stayng put just like you, cause' with your Retribution of the Antlion card still in play, you take damage for each monster my Domino Effect took down!"

**Yusei: 3200**

**Lenny: 0**

"Alright!" Tank cheered, "Yusei won! He won!"

"Who needs to hire an exterminator when we can call Yusei Fudo for free?" Jason joked.

Lenny slunked to the floor. "I was so close to winning those runners," he whined.

"You had me on the ropes for awhile, but I wasn't sure how I was gonna get few the duel. But an old friend once told me that when your back's against the wall, and it feels like there's no way out, as long as you trust of the power of your deck, youcan find your way out of any situation"

(Flashback)

_Jack: Yusei, you have to learn to rely on your entire deck. Don't you see that you could've beaten me today if you only believed in the strength of every card you duel with. Believe, and you will feel thier power._

(End flashback)

"That day, a very valuable lesson was taught to me, a lesson I'll never forget; and it's the belief I have in the power of my cards that gave me the strengh to win this duel."

"Heh, I thought those runners were mine," Lenny smirked and stood up. "Yusei, maybe me and you can be friends someday," he said sincerely, "Next time, we'll duel topside."

Yusei smiled, "But no bugs, okay?"

**Later, in New Domino...**

Entering Jack Atlas, he practices on his duel runner running a few practice rounds on his own personal racing track, until someone came to him on the intercom. _"Jack." _When he makes a stop, he takes off his helmet, to be greeted by Rex Goodwin.

"Bravo, Jack. You dueled well tonight."

And Yusei? Are things going according to plan" He asks as he looks at the brightly lit moon.

"Yes. Sector Secerity has informed us that we have nothing to worry about."

**Meanwhile...**

With that little recent event came and gone, through the giant crack on the subway celing, Yusei looks up at the same illuminating moonlight.

'look out, Jack. I'm coming to take back what's mine.'

* * *

**Jack: Let's say we kick this Jukebox into overdrive!**

They say it's not about winning.

It's how you play the game.

But if I'm not the first then I'm the worst.

And there ain't no one else to blame.

You'd better be better than best.

Anything less, you're out of your league.

Gotta go faster than fastest.

You can't catch what you can't see.

The difference between trying and winning.

One's for losers, but number one's for me.

Just can't take your best shot.

Can't just give it all ya got.

When the going's this tough.

Being good, ain't good enough.

Losing's got nice names.

Like runner-up and second place.

They're sugar-coated failures.

Just a way of saving face.

You'd better be better than best.

Anything less, you're out of your league.

Gotta go faster than fastest.

You can't catch what you can't see.

The difference between trying and winning.

One's for losers, but number one's for me.

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Chainsaw Insect**

**Stats:**** [Insect/Effect] LV4 ATK/ 2400 DEF/ 0**

**Type:**** Earth**

**Effect: If this card attacks or is attacked, your opponent draws 1 card at the end of the Damage Step.**

**(2) Shield Warrior**

**Stats:**** [Warrior/Effect] LV3 ATK/ 800 DEF/ 1600**

**Type:**** Earth**

**Effect: During damage calculation, you can remove from play this card from your Graveyard to prevent monsters you control from being destroyed by this battle.**

**(3) Pinch Hopper**

**Stats:**** [Insect/Effect] LV4 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ 1200**

**Type:**** Earth**

**Effect: When this card on your side of the field is sent to the Graveyard, you can Special Summon 1 Insect-Type Monster from your hand.**

**(4) Metal Armored Bug**

**Stats:**** [Insect/Effect] LV8 ATK/ 2800 DEF/ 1500**

**Type:**** Earth**

**(5) Insect Knight**

**Stats:**** [Insect/Effect] LV4 ATK/ 1900 DEF/ 1500**

**Type: Earth**

**(6) Doom Dozer**

**Stats:**** [Insect/Effect] LV3 ATK/ 2800 DEF/ 2600**

**Type:**** Earth**

**Effect: This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card cannot be Special Summoned except by removing from play 2 Insect-Type monsters in your Graveyard. When this card inflicts Battle Damage to your opponent's Life Points, send 1 card from the tops of your opponent's Deck to the Graveyard.**

**(7) Speed Warrior**

**Stats: [Warrior/Effect] LV2 ATK/ 900 DEF/ 400  
Type: Wind**

**Effect: During the Battle Pase of the turn you Normal Summon this card, you can double its original ATK until the end of the Battle Phase.**

**(8) Junk Synchron**

******Stats:** [Warrior/Tuner] LV3 ATK/1300 DEF/ 500  
**Type:** Dark

**Effect: When this card is Normal Summoned, you can Special Summon 1 Level 2 or lower monster from your Graveyard in face-up Defense Position. That monster's effect(s) is negated.**

**(9) Junk Warrior**

**Stats: [Warrior/Synchro/Effect] LV5 ATK/2300 DEF/1300  
Type: Dark**

**Synchro Requirements: "Junk Synchron" + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters **

**Effect: When this card is Synchro Summoned, it gains ATK equal to the total ATK of all Level 2 and lower monsters on the field.**

* * *

Jason: Now let's look what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5Ds:

**Nervin: A test run is one thing, but the real thing is something else. If they catch you and...**

**Tank: Don't listen to those guys, you two. Just, uh, I don't know, hit the gas and don't ever look back.**

**Trudge: See, with that acceleration chip you installed, I can now force you to turbo duel!**

**Jason: Eh? Nothing happened?**

**Justine: Are you surprised? Did you just notice that your speed counters aren't increasing? Well, they're not going to!**

**Next time on Stardust Accelerator: Sewer Rats**

**Yusei: If I get out-dueled down here, I'll never get a chance to settle the score with Jack, and Jack will never have to answer for what he did.**


	10. Sewer Rats

**same disclaimer applies**

Later that night, Yusei Fudo and Jason Hutchins are preparing for thier long and dangerous journey to New Domino City. The whole gang met at the edge of the subway station.

"You've only got one shot at this, you guys. The maitenance hatch opens at midnight and only stays open for 6 minutes after that."

"They know."

"Then they flood the pipeline with garbage."

"They know!"

"And as soon as you jump over the sewage plant's fence, the security will be--"

"They know!!" Rally shouted, "Try being positive for once, Nervin."

"Eh, I thought I was."

The small alarm clock on Yusei's duel runner beeped at 11:15 P.M. Only 45 minutes remain until the hatch opens. This is when he and Jason deciden to take thier leave.

"Hey, Yuse," Blitz asked, "Are you sure you wanna go through with this?"

"A test run is one thing, but the real thing is something else," Nervin pointed out, "If they catch you and..."

"Don't listen to those guys, you two," Tank smiled, "Just, uh, I don't know, hit the gas and don't ever look back."

"Oh, almost forgot!" Rally ran up to Yusei, reached into his pocket and gave him a card. "Here, for good luck."

"What is it, Rally?" Yusei asked as he took the card.

"Turbo Booster!"

"But wasn't this your father's card?"

"Mhm, I want you to take it. Like my dad always says, you'll never know when you might need a boost. I just hope it'll help get back your Stardust Dragon from Jack!"

Yusei slides Rally's card into his deck and puts on his helmet before leaving, "You gonna be on the monitor?"

"Mhm, we'll go topside so we can get a clear signal. Now, Rev it up!"

"And don't slow down for nothin'," Blitz added.

As they revved thier runners, Yusei and Jason sped through the station.

'It's time to settle the score with Jack,' Yusei thought.

**

* * *

**

Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 7: Sewer Rats**

* * *

Passing the stairs, the two D-wheelers catapulted from the entrance and raced across the street towards the sewage plant. But thier trip didn't go unnoticed.

**Meanwhile, at the Security Office...**

"We have movement! Yusei's gone topside," A scout announced to Officer Trudge, "We picked up the homing signal from the stolen chip!"

"So, where is he?!"

"He's in the East Sector! Switching to satellite imaging, now!" The scout switched the image to see a visual play of Yusei and Jason speeding across the street.

"It's that Satellite!" Justine exclaimed as soon as she spotted Jason Hutchins. "Good, I've been itching for another scrap at him."

"Well, if you want him so bad I suggest you stop gawking and follow me!" Trudge scolds and looks back at the scout before leaving, "Lock on to that chip, then open up a com-link and update me. Do not lose him!"

**Minutes later, as the two patrollers rode on the debrised street...**

_"Trudge, they just turned off Montague heading south on __Davis Dr__!"_

"On my way, central!"

**On another part of town, Yusei's Co. was pursuing them as well.**

"The maintenance hatch opens in 4 minutes." Blitz announced as he looked at his watch. "Let's book it!"

When they reached the highest building they could, they climbed a latter to get the highest view they could.

"Careful—"

"Not now, Nervin!"

As they reached the platform, Blitz took out a pair of binoculars to look for the two D-wheelers.

"Can you see them?" Rally asks.

And after a few moments, Blitz spotted them. "There they go! Oh, yeah!"

"We got a clear signal on the monitor." Nervin also brought over Yusei's laptop so they can watch them on the screen.

* * *

But suddenly, an alarm blared from the sewage plant, "WARNING! WARNING! YOU ARE ENTURING AN UNATHORIZED ZONE! TURN BACK, IMEDIATELY!

On the road, Yusei and Jason are on their way to their destination, until…

"Pull over, Yusei!"

Officer Trudge appears as his runner swerved onto Yusei's, but Yusei managed to swerve back. "Trudge?!"

"How'd he find us?!" Jason exclaimed.

"Just where do you think you're going?" That is when Officer Altman showed up and appeared between Yusei and Jason, "Don't you know its two hours past curfew? Or can you still not tell time? Pull over!" But that's quite the opposite, as the two D-wheelers sped away from them.

"Hmph, kids these days, never do what their told," Trudge mumbled, but suddenly he found out where they were going, "Huh? Are they going for the sewage plant?!"

That's exactly where they're going as the wheelers broke through the gate arm and jumped high above the gates.

"Hanson, come in!" Trudge shouts over the intercom, "Open the security gates and do it quick!" And right on cue, the gates automatically opened.

_"They're heading for the compactors!"_

"We're on em'! They won't get far! There's nowhere they can go!"

With each and every corner, Trudge and Justine on right on tail to Yusei and Jason.

* * *

"Uh, oh," Nervin gasped, "Sector Security's closing in on them!"

"Aw, man, not Trudge again.

* * *

'This should be fun,' Justine thought. "You may have beaten me in our last duel, but I got something special planned for you and this time, I'm declaring on taking you down!" she said as she pressed a button on her runner council. _"DUEL MODE, ENGAGED; AUTO PILOT, STANDING BY!" _

"And with that acceleration chip you installed, Yusei, I can now force you to turbo duel as well!" Trudge declared as he did the same thing. _"DUEL MODE, ENGAGED; AUTO PILOT, STANDING BY!"_

Once the field spell was activated, Yusei and Jason's runners operated on their own. _"OVERRIDING SUSPECT'S DUEL RUNNER…" _"Huh, but how?" Yusei gasped, _"AUTO PILOT ENGAGED!"

* * *

_

"This wasn't in the plan," Tank complained as he and the others watched the monitor.

"Trudge and Altman hacked in somehow," Rally said.

"Well, Yuse and Jason need to get un-hacked; there's no time to duel!" Blitz protested.

* * *

"I may have let you off the hook last time, Satellite," Justine said to Jason, "But this time, me and my Special Pursuit deck are gonna haul you to The Facility for good!"

"You can't escape, Yusei," Trudge said, "See, that acceleration chip you installed has enabled me to hack into yours and other nearby duel runner's mainframe, and the only way to break free of the connection is to beat us!"

**Yusei/Jason: 4000**

**Trudge/Altman: 4000**

Every wheeler drew 5 cards, "And now I'm gonna show you what my special pursuit deck is made of! First I summon out (1)Gate Blocker (100/2000) in defense mode!" The monster Trudge summoned was actually a giant slab with an eye ornamented on it. It glowed a blue aura.

* * *

"Anyone know what that thing does?" Nervin asks.

"I've never heard of that one," Rally said.

* * *

"Now, with perimeter secured, I place one card face-down and end my turn." A reverse card appears beside Trudge.

**Yusei/Jason: 4000 (0)**

**Trudge/Altman: 4000 (2)**

"What, nothing happened," Jason said as he realized that his speed counters didn't increase.

"Are you surprised?" Justine asked, "Did you just notice that your speed counters aren't increasing?" She then gave a smug smile, "Well, they're not going to! See, it's all part of our plan. In our last duel we underestimated the power of your decks and almost wound up back on traffic duty. But unlike you Satellites, we learn from our mistakes. And this time, you won't be surprising us, but have we got some surprises for you…"

"Such as my Gate Blocker monster card which has both your gears stuck in neutral," Trudge finished, "Seems like an appropriate effect, wouldn't you say?"

"Why's that?" Yusei asked.

"Because, just like in life, you're going nowhere, unless you count being sent to The Facility as 'going somewhere'. Only this time it isn't gonna be some little vacation like your trip to the Reeducation Center. See, this time, Yusei, you're gonna be locked away for a very, very long time!"

"Assuming you can catch me," Yusei revved his runner despite of the mobile roadblock in front of them.

* * *

The clock just struck twelve, and the pipeline shuts down.

Tank: "Uh, oh! Is it midnight already?"

Nervin: "In 3 minutes, they'll be closing the hatch, and then Yuse and Jason won't be able to make it through to New Domino city!"

Rally: "Man, Officer Trudge is always getting in the way!"

* * *

"Hey, Yusei," Jason asked, "Are you sure we can still get to the pipeline in time?"

"There's no other option. If I get out-dueled down here, I'll never get another chance to settle the score with Jack, and Jack will never have to answer for what he did. I can't let that happen!"

**Yusei/Jason: 4000 (0)**

**Trudge/Altman: 4000 (2)**

**

* * *

**

Tank: "C'mon, guys!"

Rally: "Break away!"

"The green light's mine," Yusei drew, "And I summon Speed Warrior (900/400) in attack mode!" Yusei's super-skater monster appeared beside him.

"Ha! I remember that toy from our last duel!" Trudge said, "And I remember that its attack points double on the turn it's summoned. But like last time, it's just too weak. I guess you still haven't learned how to add, have you?"

Speed Warrior: (1800/400)

'Ok, Rally, let's see what this card of yours can do.' I special summon Turbo Booster (0/0) in attack mode!" Yusei brings out Rally's favorite yellow mecha to the field.

* * *

Rally: "He actually played my card!"

* * *

"Power up!" Speed Warrior plants his feet onto Turbo Booster's trend-arms… "Speed Warrior, release!" which fired away with Speed Warrior still on them.

"So? That don't scare me."

"It should, because now, Speed Warrior can attack using Turbo's special ability!" Jason said, "When I release turbo Booster, one of my opponent's monsters is destroyed, if it battle against the monster I summoned this turn!"

* * *

Rally: "Incredible I have no idea you can do that with Turbo Booster!"

Blitz: "They might be able to take out Gate Blocker, which means they might be able to break free, which me they might be able to kick into overdrive, which means they might still make it! …of course, they might not."

* * *

"Not good enough!" Trudge pointed out, "Even if you destroy Gate Blocker with that boost of yours, Gate Blocker's defense is still too strong. And just like our last duel, you're gonna get hurt in this blast, not me." Trudge proves his point as Speed Warrior shattered the securities' steel shield (bet you can't say that three times), and Yusei takes the damage.

**Yusei/Jason: 3800 (0)**

**Trudge/Altman: 4000 (2)

* * *

**

Rally: "Boom, Vroom, Kaboom! I just knew my card would help him out!"

Tank: "Yeah! Go get him, Yusei!"

* * *

Just a few feet away, Jason and Yusei managed to reach the disposal pipe.

"Hey, Yusei, is that it?"

"The main pipeline; we may still have enough time."

And right on cue, the two D-wheelers swerved off the road and landed towards the pipe, and sped into it. But that didn't stop the Securities on their tail. "Hanson!"

_"Sir?!"_

"They've gone into the waste disposal system! Switch to the security cameras down there! Don't lose him!

* * *

Nervin: "Uh oh, it looks like Trudge and Altman aren't giving up."

Rally: "Don't worry, they'll shake em'."

Blitz: "There's no way to shake em' now; the pipeline's a straight shot!"

* * *

"Ready for another surprise?" Trudge clicks on a button on his console. "I activate my Broken Blocker trap so I can play _two _Gate Blockers!" And right on cue, his trap card beamed forward another pair of Blockers.

* * *

Tank: "Oh man, more roadblocks?!"

* * *

"What made you break curfew tonight, Yusei? Are you trying to escape The Satellite?"

"And what if I am?"

"Don't you know that your kind don't exactly fit in in New Domino City?"

"I'm not going there to 'fit in'."

"So what's your plan? We both know you got some enemies in very high places. You trying to get to New Domino City to settle some score?"

"Something like that," Yusei sets two reverse cards, "I place two cards face-down and end my turn."

* * *

Nervin: "Only 4 minutes left, and eight miles of pipeline to go."

Rally: "They'll make it. We did six test runs. Yusei and Jason know what they're doing."

Tank: "Security wasn't harassing them on those test runs; and by this point they were so much closer to the goal!"

* * *

"There's no escape, Satellites," Altman drew, and sets a reverse card, "And to make sure of it, I'm calling in some backup, by radioing (2)Gonogo (1350/1600) to the field in attack mode!" Justine's monster appears as a giant bowling ball with eyes and a pointy nose. "Gonogo, move in and take out speed warrior!" On command, Gonogo rolled forward and did to Speed Warrior what that boulder would've done to Indiana Jones if he hadn't evaded it back at the Lost Temple. It all concluded in a small cloud of dust.

**Yusei/Jason: 3350 (0)**

**Trudge/Altman: 4000 (3)**

"Ha! Your loss is my gain!" But once the smoke cleared, Jason wasn't anywhere in sight, "Where did that punk disappeared to—" but was suddenly yelped when she spotted him close right next to her.

"I want to ask you something," he said, "What did Trudge mean when he said Satallites don't fit in New Domino?"

"Hmph, I never thought you'd be one for History. But since you're so curious about it, then listen up 'cause I'm only gonna say this once… See, The Satellite used to be the original Domino City, instead of the large island today, until some natural disaster broke the two apart. Because it suffered from urban decay, it got its name due to it being the 'Satellite' of the 'wealthier' New Domino City now. So it's used as a recycling plant and Satellites are made to work there; to recycle the trash and turn it into energy."

"But if that's true, that doesn't give New Domino the right to look down on Satellites…"

"That doesn't matter!" Altman snapped, "Satellites are just like the trash they recycle; just like any trash the city doesn't want, they don't want any Satellites walking around polluting the almost-perfect utopia! Satellites are scum! They always have been since it was isolated from the main city, and it always will bee from now on!"

"But that's just wrong! If it's the Satellites who give that city the energy they need, they should be gratified, not looked down upon. What kind of people would abuse the very people who gave life to the city the very people who…"

"Jason," Yusei snapped at him, "The clock's still ticking! This is not the time, nor the place!"

"Oh, yeah, I guess it's my turn," Jason smiled at the card he drew, "This is just what I needed; I summon the tuner monster, Genex Controller!" Jason's favorite little tuner arrived between him and Yusei.

"Next I activate the Graceful Revival trap card!" Yusei played his reverse card, "See, Graceful Revival lets me summon a level 2 or below monster from my graveyard, so I'm bringing back Speed Warrior!" Graceful Revival dissolved into bright pixels, which bring out Speed Warrior from it. "Jason, you know what to do."

"You got it!" Controller's gears spun inside him as he became a synchro tunnel which surrounded Speed Warrior as he chanted: "Divested stars form a lost soul! Become the vessel to begin its journey!"

As the light died out, a bigger mecha appeared; it has silver limbs which are supported by large grey gauntlets and leg guards similar to Junk Warrior's. It has a large armored torso with the same color and a helmet shielding its eyes with a bright-green visor, complete with a jetpack on its back. "(2)Drive Genex (2300/1000), Accelerate!"

Yusei was amazed by the monster Jason played, "Wow, when did you get that?"

"I've been had it; I just never found the right time to use it," Jason answered, "Drive Genex, send that oversized bowling ball to the scrap heap!" Drive fired his jet pack and flew over to Gonogo, "Go, Drive Fist!" Charging its gauntlets with a green aura, Drive rushed in and shattered Gonogo, taking a piece of Altman's life points with it.

**Yusei/Jason: 3350 (0)**

**Trudge/Altman: 3050 (4)**

"I'll just end my turn with a couple of face-downs."

"It's my turn, then," Trudge drew and smiled at what he drew, "You're not the only ones who know how to soup up your monsters. I summon (3)Jutte Fighter (700/900)!" He played a small near-sighted samurai holding a jutte and a lantern on his back.

"That's a tuner monster!" Yusei exclaimed.

"Sure is. And there's still more surprises to come. Jutte Fighter!" Jutte's lantern glows and entered the synchro process. "I tune you to my Gate Blocker in order to synchro summon (4)Goyo Guardian (2800/2000)!" The synchro tunnel unleashes a figure dressed in samurai garments and kabuki makeup. He wields Jutte Fighter's jutte on the end of a rope.

"It looks like you've underestimated my deck this time, doesn't it?" Trudge sneered, "Now attack!" Goyo swung his jutte and then impales Drive Genex with it. But instead of being destroyed, it was wrapped up in the rope as Goyo pulls Drive to him, ending up in defense mode.

**Yusei/Jason: 2850 (0)**

**Trudge/Altman: 3050 (5)**

"Goyo Guardian is a special monster. See, when it attacks, it doesn't destroy anything, it just takes control of them and uses them to do its bidding."

"Kinda like the relationship you have with Jack Atlas. Huh, Trudge?" Yusei joked.

"You Satellites, you never know when to stop talking back."

* * *

Nervin: "Only 3 minutes and 20 seconds left!"

Rally: "C'mon, guys, hurry! You're running out of time! C'mon, go!"

* * *

Trudge checks over the number of speed counters he has, "Nice, with my speed counter at 5, I'm able to crank this hot pursuit up to the next level by activating a speed spell from my hand. Go, Sonic Buster!" Trudge's spell card appeared as if fired a pink ray of energy to Goyo Guardian."

"When you guys said you were full of surprises, you weren't kidding!" Jason commented.

"Well, I'm glad we didn't disappoint," Altman said, "And guess what, Satellite, I won't be disappointing my superiors, either, because this time I'm not gonna let you just walk away when the last card is played." After that, Goyo unleashed his dormant energy at Jason. "And with that attack, it's only a matter of time before your life points are running on empty."

**Yusei/Jason: 1450 (0)**

**Trudge/Altman: 3050 (5)**

"Now, to make sure you don't pull some fancy maneuver, I'm playing a second sonic buster to slow your game down!" Trudge played his second spell as Goyo fired his energy at Yusei. Now both D-wheelers are gradually slowing down, right beside the two patrollers.

**Yusei/Jason: 50 (0)**

**Trudge/Altman: 3050 (5)

* * *

**

Tank: "Gah! Now they'll never clear the hatch!"

* * *

"You won't beat me this time, Yusei; and neither of you are escaping from The Satellite, cause once I win, I'm taking you in," Trudge taunt, "I can't wait to see you get locked up!"

"Well, you're gonna have to keep on waiting, Officer Trudge. 'Cause we're about to put the pedal to the metal!"

"But me and my partner's got all the power."

**Yusei/Jason: 50 (0)**

**Trudge/Altman: 3050 (6)**

"You sure about that?" Yusei drew, "I summon the tuner monster, (5)Nitro Synchron (300/100)!" Yusei called out a giant nitrogen tank with a clown's face on it.

"Another tuner monster? Feh, you never were one to give up without a fight? Too bad I got your speed counters all locked up."

"That's what you think." Yusei pressed a button on his console, "I play one on Jason's face-down: the Speed Spell Dash Pilfer! Whenever I have 4 or more speed counters, I can take control of an opponent's monster that's face-up and in defense mode!"

"No way! With my Gate Blockers on the field, you don't have enough power to play a spell!"

"Yeah? Well you should double check your screen," Jason said.

Trudge monitors his runner console, and sure enough, here are the results:

**Yusei/Jason: 50 (6)**

**Trudge/Altman: 3050 (6)**

"What the?! But…but…that's impossible! You shouldn't have any speed counters!!" Trudge gulped, "How could this be?"

(Flashback)

_Trudge checks over the number of speed counters he has, "Nice, with my speed counter at 5, I'm able to crank this hot pursuit up to the next level by activating a speed spell from my hand. Go, Sonic Buster!" Trudge's spell card appeared as if fired a pink ray of energy to Goyo Guardian." While a reverse card opened up._

Altman: Oh no, when Trudge played that speed spell they must've countered with something.

(End flashback)

"We sure did," Jason said, "So if you think you're the only ones full of surprises, guess again."

"Now, I know you're not one for detail, but this little oversight is gonna cost you big time," Yusei said, "See, while you and your little partner were busy trying to hold our game down, I played the trap card Slip Stream, which gave us the same amount of counters you have when you played your second Sonic Buster."

"So by trying to slow us down,--"

"YOU'VE ONLY MADE US FASTER!!!" they both said in unison as they raced across the pipeline with their new found speed.

Trudge shouted, "That's just like you, waiting for handouts, latching on to someone else!" Trudge and Altman tried to catch up with them.

"Dash Pilfer, get in there and rescue Drive Genex!" Yusei uses Jason's spell card to create an array of energy to break Drive's bonds and set him free. "Trudge, after all this time you still don't know anything about us Satellites. All you ever see are rules and them being broken, but you never stopped to ask why, have you? I guess it pays well to be ignorant, doesn't it?"

* * *

Blitz: "This is no time to be letchering! You've only got a minute and 10 seconds!"

Rally: "They're almost there!"

Tank: "All they have to do is slip through that side hatch before it closes!"

* * *

Surely enough, they're just a fey yards away. They can see the maintenance hatch from where they're riding.

"That hatch!" Trudge exclaimed, "You're planning on using that to escape from The Satellite!"

"Took you long enough to figure that out," Yusei smiled, "I guess nothing gets by you Security, does it? That is, nothing but me, Jason and our duel runners!"

"Well, I'm just one move away from proving you wrong and locking you up for good!"

"Not gonna happen, 'cause we're about to accelerate one last time!" Nitro then started glowing a green aura, "Now Nitro Synchro, give Drive Genex a tune-up!" Nitro and Drive flew side-by-side as they went through the synchro process. "Now for a little chanting of my own: Clustering minds will now become a new force! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon!" In their place conjures a giant green warrior, it has a pair of bull horns on its head and, strangely enough, has a giant rocket booster on his rear end. "Blaze on, (6)Nitro Warrior (2800/1800)! Trudge, I got one last surprise for you: if Nitro Warrior attacks on the turn a speed spell was used, it gains 1000 ATK points!"

"It what?!"

"And that's not all," Jason plays his second face-down, a trap card that depicted Thermal Genex unleashing an array of blue flames from all over his body, with Genex Heat behind it in the background glowing an orange aura. "With this trap card, Nitro Warrior gains ATK power equal to the original ATK of any and all non-tuner Genex monsters used for his synchro summon!"

"But that's 2300 ATK points!!" Altman anguished.

Nitro Warrior: (6100/1800)

"And with that, you Goyo Guardian is a goner!" Yusei sends his monster to attack, with its fists glowing a green chakra. "Nitro Warrior, attack with Dynamite Crunch!"

'I've gotta try protect my life points!' "I play the trap card, Nutrient Z!" Justine played her reverse card, "It gives the player 4000 life points whenever they're about to take 2000 of more points of battle damage!"

**Yusei/Jason: 50 (6)**

**Trudge/Altman: 7050 (6)**

"That still won't stop Nitro Warrior," Nitro's chakra expanded as Goyo gets grounded by giant fists of chakra fury.

**Yusei/Jason: 50 (6)**

**Trudge/Altman: 3750 (3)**

"This ain't over yet, Yusei," Trudge growled.

"Oh, yes it is." See, Nitro Warrior comes custom-made with a special ability. When it destroys one of your monsters, and you have a monster in defense mode like Gate Blocker, it forces it into attack mode!"

Trudge watched as his blocker loses its blue aura. "But then I can't protect myself!"

"And even though my Nitro Warrior loses 1000 ATK points, it's still strong enough to destroy Gate Blocker and win this duel!"

Nitro Warrior: (5100/1800)

Nitro finishes with another Dynamite Crunch which took out Gate Blocker. Both Trudge and Justine screamed as their life points dropped to zero and their runners shut down.

**Yusei/Jason: 50 (6)**

**Trudge/Altman: 0 (0)

* * *

**

Everybody: "They won!"

Blitz: "They made Trudge and Altman wipe out!"

Nervin: "Too bad they couldn't stop the clock! (0:00) The hatch is gonna close…"

Tank: "And that means Yuse and Jason won't be able to escape!"

Rally: "Rev it up, Yuse!"

* * *

At that moment, the large front hatch opened, unleashing a barrage of giant piles of scrap. Left and right, the

two D-wheelers dodged each and every piece of scrap, big and small. When a giant storage box came straight at them, without anywhere to turn, their only choice was to lean over their runners to pass it. 'C'mon, stay on target!' With the hatch inches away from closing, it was only pure luck when they manage to slip through right before it closed.

"!!!!!!" Trudge and Altman watched in horror as the tyrannical tsunami of trash comes crashing down on then, pushing them from the pipeline. "CENTRAL!!! OVERRIDE THE TRASH COMPACTOR!!! OVERIDE THE !!!"

* * *

Tank: "What happened?!"

Nervin: "I don't know; the screen went blank."

Rally: "They made it through the hatch. I just know they did. I just know it!"

Tank: "…but if they didn't…"

Assuming the worse, their friends are about to give up until…

Blitz: "hey, what's that?"

There on the computer screen, two flashing blips have been shown.

Nervin: "It's Jason and Yusei!"

As it turns out, their friends made it through safe, sound and unscathed.

Rally: "Ha! I told you! I so told you!"

Tank: "They did it! They actually made it through to New Domino City!"

Nervin: "That's right! I never had a doubt!"

* * *

Meanwhile, near the shoreline, Yusei Fudo and Jason Hutchins are about to brace themselves for their possibly perilous journey ahead.

"Hey, Yusei, now that we're here, how are you supposed to find Jack Atlas at this late hour?"

"Actually—"

"Yusei!" Both Yusei and Jason skied to a halt when they heard the stranger's voice. But that voice is only a stranger to one of them…

"I think Jack already found me."

Right above them, standing on a nearby bridge, bathing under the moonlight, donning spiky blonde hair, wearing a white tailcoat, is none other than The Master of Faster, The King, Jack Atlas.

"Long time, no see! How you been?" Jack let out a creepy chuckle as he and Yusei stare each other down. "What's the matter, Yusei? Aren't you happy to see your old friend Jack?" he continued to chuckle in the still, quiet time of midnight. Yusei's been waiting a long time for this very moment.

**TO BE CONTINUED…

* * *

**

**Jack: Let's say we kick this Jukebox into overdrive!**

Yu-gi-oh 5d's  
Yusei you will not be denied  
Ok you're one of the chosen 5  
Jack Atlas the master of faster wants to defeat delete deplete,  
he wants to beat you!  
Duel runners gonna turbo duel come on.  
Let's ride lets go Whoa-oh!  
Yu-gi-oh 5d's!  
The time has come now to break the rules,  
Come on, lets ride lets go Whoa-oh!  
Yu-gi-oh 5d's!  
Uncover the secret of the Crimson Dragon.  
Let's ride.  
Welcome to New Domino city.  
Let's ride.  
Duel runners gonna turbo duel come on,  
Lets ride lets go Whoa-oh!  
Yu-gi-oh 5d's  
The time has come now to break the rules,  
Come on  
Lets ride lets go Whoa-oh!  
Yu-gi-oh 5d's! 5d's!  
And find the secret of the crimson dragon...

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Gate Blocker**

**Stats: [Rock/Effect] LV4 ATK/ 100 DEF/ 2000**

**Type: Earth**

**Effect: ****As long as this card remains face-up on the field, your opponent cannot gain Speed Counters during each player's Standby Phases with the effect of "Speed World".**

**(2) Drive Genex**

**Stats: [Warrior/Synchro/Effect] LV4 ATK/ 2300 DEF/ 1000**

**Type: Dark**

**Synchro Requirements: "Genex Controller" + 1 or more non-tuner monsters**

**Effect: This card gains ATK equal to the total ATK of face-up Level 3 or lower Genex monsters you control.**

**(3) Jutte Fighter**

**Stats: [Warrior/Tuner] LV2 ATK/ 700 DEF/ 900 **

** Type: Earth**

** Description: Once per turn, you can switch 1 face-up Attack Position Monster your opponent controls to Defense Position.**

**(4) Goyo Guardian**

**Stats: [Warrior/Synchro/Effect] LV6 ATK/2800 DEF/2000 **

** Type: Earth **

** Synchro Requirements: 1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters **  
** Effect:When this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard, you can Special Summon that monster to your side of the field in face-up Defense Position.**

**(5) Nitro Synchron**

**Stats: [Machine/Tuner] LV2 ATK/ 300 DEF/ 300 **

**Type: Fire**

** Description: When this card is used to Synchro Summon a "Nitro" Synchro Monster and is sent to the Graveyard, draw 1 card.**

**(6) Nitro Warrior**

**Stats: [Warrior/Synchro/Effect] LV7 ATK/2800 DEF/1800 **

** Monster Class-Type: Fire **

** Synchro Requirements: "Nitro Warrior" + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters**  
** Effect: Once during each of your turns, if you activated a Spell Card, this card gains 1000 ATK during its next attack, for damage calculation only. Once per turn, if this attacking card destroys an opponent's monster by battle, you can change 1 face-up Defense Position monster your opponent controls to Attack Position, and attack it with this card.**

* * *

Jason: Now let's look what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5Ds:

**Jack: Now then, what brings you here?**

**Yusei: I want to know where my Stardust Dragon is!**

**Jack: Here, take it! I sure don't need it anymore!**

**Yusei: No, Jack. I want the card, but wanna make you pay for what you did more! And when I beat you, then I'll take my card back!**

**Jack: Hmph, you always were a dreamer. Well, get ready; because here comes your wake-up call!**

**????: Synchro Summon! Rise, Blue-Eyes Divine Dragon!**

**Next Time on Stardust Accelerator: A Blast from the Past**

**Jack: You're gonna regret ever coming here, Yusei, 'cause i'm gonna beat you with your own card.  
**


	11. A Blast from the Past: Part 1

Same disclaimer applied

**Yusei: Now let's get up to speed with YuGiOh 5Ds:**

"Hey, Yusei, now that we're here, how are you supposed to find Jack Atlas at this late hour?"

"Actually—"

"Yusei!" Both Yusei and Jason skied to a halt when they heard the stranger's voice. But that voice is only a stranger to one of them…

"I think Jack already found me."

Right above them, standing on a nearby bridge, bathing under the moonlight, donning spiky blonde hair, wearing a white tailcoat, is none other than The Master of Faster, The King, Jack Atlas.

"Long time, no see! How you been?" Jack let out a creepy chuckle as he and Yusei stare each other down. "What's the matter, Yusei? Aren't you happy to see your old friend Jack?" he continued to chuckle in the still, quiet time of midnight. Yusei's been waiting a long time for this very moment.

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 8: A Blast from the Past**

**Part 1: Dragons Five

* * *

**

Beginning from where we last left off, our favorite D-wheelers were face-to-face with The Master of Faster, Jack Atlas. "So, Yusei, you made good time, didn't ya? I hope Officer Trudge didn't inconvenience you too much," He taunted, "Please don't take it personally. He's just doing what I pay him to do."

'So this is that Jack Atlas person they told me about," Jason thought, "Hey, Yusei, something tells me I shouldn't get involved in this, so I think now's the time we part ways."

"Ok, this is my fight to battle and mine alone."

"Ok…" Jason stands there for what seems like an eternity, "Alright, then I guess I'll be going then," Jason turned on the engine and started his way out of the plant.

'Good luck, Jason,' Yusei thought as he watched Jason ride further and further away. As soon as he disappears into the night, he looks back up at the bridge that mounts Jack Atlas.

Jack also took a quick glance at the dismissing rider, "Hmph, if I was expecting you to bring company, I would've thrown a party," he mocked before he went back to the subject at hand, "Now then, what brings you here?"

"I want my Stardust Dragon back." Yusei scowls.

"Hmph, and I guess you'll be wanting your runner back as well?"

"I don't need it."

"So it's just the card? I would've thought you'd move on by now, since you've gotten over losing your runner already. By the way, how's the new one treatin' ya'?"

"I got no complaints; and how's the one you stole from me? Still running well, I hope."

Jack chuckled, "You never could let go of anything, could you, Yusei?"

"I never was one to forgive and forget. Now where's my card?"

"What's the rush? Don't you want to catch up on old times?"

"I _want _ to know where my Stardust Dragon is!" Yusei growled as he tighteded his fists.

"Oh, you mean this old thing here?" That's when Jack fumbles his inside coat pocket and pulls out a card with a white background. It has a picture of a white dragon surrounded by tiny stars. It was the Stardust Dragon card. "Does it still look the same?"

"How could you?!"

"That card was wasting away with you in The Satellite! I couldn't bear to watch it sit in the hand of a loser!"

"But Jack, how could you take it when you know it was the only hope our friends had of getting out of The Satellite? It was meant to help us all."

"Well, it certainly helped me when I got to New Domino City. And to show my thanks, you can have your precious dragon card back," Jack tossed the card to Yusei who caught it, "Here, take it; I sure don't need it any more."

Jack was expecting him to just put the card away and leave, but Yusei was hesitant. "What now, Yusei? Are you having second thoughts?"

"No, Jack," Yusei threw his Stardust back over to Jack, "I want the card, but I wanna make you pay for what you did, more. And when I beat you, then I'll take my card back."

"Hmph, you always were a dreamer," Jack coffined, "Well get ready, because here comes your wake-up call!"

**Meanwhile, on the highway…**

Jason rides through the empty night highway, watching the bright colors of the city as he goes by, 'Wow, New Domino City is even prettier than where I was watching from The Satellite,' he thought, 'But now what? I made it to this place, but I have no idea what to do to rid myself of my little 'problem' (a). There's no one around I can talk to at this late hour, and I can't afford a room at an inn. I guess I forgotten to plan ahead like Yusei.'

Just then, a strange, faint whirring sound invaded his ears. As the sound grew louder and louder, he knew it was a duel runner. Jason slowed down a bit so he could wait for that runner to come towards him. When it had, he shifted his gears to match the same speed as that cycle. The duel runner next to him was the most amazing D-wheel he's ever seen. It has a front nose that's modeled after a strange dragon. The wheels were supported by axels the shape of dragon claws. The back end was fashioned by a dragon's tail, and it all was piloted by a biker riding sport-style in a white rider's suit. He can tell that the rider was female, due to the flowing hair trailing underneath her helmet.

'I wonder…' "Um, excuse me," Jason called out to the rider, who gave no response, "I know it's kind of late, but I was wondering if you and I can duel some time, you know, if it's not much of a problem for you?"

"…forget it."

"Um, pardon me?"

"I said forget it," she said in a cold voice, "You're not even worth my time, so get lost," the rider rode of past Jason, but he just caught up with her.

"Well, if I didn't know better, I'd definitely think that you're just a little scared," He couldn't see it, but the rider's eye twitched. That's when she stepped on the break and skied to a stop. Jason did the same.

"What did you just say?!" she growled.

"I'm just saying that you shouldn't ignore another duelist's request. I mean, you might not know what that person could be capable of."

That made the rider really peeved, but she held her poster. "Fine, but I won't do it because I'm scared; I'll do it because I want to," she started up her runner again, "C'mon, we'll settle it at the Kaibadome."

"The Kaiba-what?"

She sighed, "You'd better follow me if you don't want to get lost; c'mon," following the mysterious D-wheeler, Jason followed her to wherever she's taking them.

* * *

Unbeknownst to Jason, Yusei is following Jack Atlas on the highway, "When are you gonna tell me where we're heading, Jack?"

"Stop your worrying, and enjoy the view already," Jack said with a smug look on his face, "So what do you think of New Domino City? It's a 'little' step-up from The Satellite, isn't it? But if you get homesick, I'm sure I can find a trash bin for you to play in?"

"Are we gonna duel, or are you gonna play Tour Guide all night?"

Jack chuckled, "Well, since you worked so hard to get here, I figured I show you the sights before you get shifted to the Satelite Center."

"We'll see."

"Yes, we will. Looks like were here," Jack glanced at a huge dark shadow ahead, it's a dome-like building when the got closer, "Welcome, to the Kaibadome!" When they got to the entrance, they failed to see an active security camera watching them…

* * *

"WWWHHOOAAA-WWWHHOOAAAHHH!!! So you see?"

"See what, professor? An excuse to get dizzy?"

We now change the scene to the Sector Security HQ in the city. Here in a giant conference room, surrounded by a group of suits, is the Director of Engineering, Zixzix. He was so excited about what just happened that he danced in front of everyone.

"No! An incredible breakthrough! Our spinning generator has gone into, into overdrive! See? Just like this; watch the arms here, people! Whhooaahh!" Zixzix spun his arms and then danced around in twirls. "I know just what you're thinking: 'Is this a big new dance craze, or what?!' Well, it's NOOOOOO-OOOOOOT!!!! As you know, our power generator powers cars, lights, and, WWWHHOOAA, turbo duels! It controls the whole city, everything we do!"

"Professor, we know all of that. We're just wondering why you called us to this meeting at half-past-midnight," Goodwin scowled, "And it better be important."

"Why yes, yes it is, sir."

"Then you can stop dancing and get to the point; or should I begin looking for a new Director of Engineering."

Zixzix laughed as a giant flat monitor descended into the room, which showed a simulation of said generator, "Just watch the big screed, Mr. Goodwin! It appears there's more energy being produced by this generator than we ever thought was possible! It's like a proportional motion machine: the more energy it produces, the more powerful it becomes! And guess what: as long as it keeps spinning _round, round, round,_ we sir, WILL BE THE MASTEEERS OF THE UNIVERRRSE!!! (clears throat) I mean that you, are Master of the Universe, Mr. Goodwin."

"Pardon the intrusion," Good win is being call on by a young lady, she wears a blue business suit, and has short blue hair to match it.

"Yes, Mina?"

Mina leaned into his ear and whispered, "Mr. Atlas is missing."

"_What?_" he growled, then looked back to Zixzix, "Professor?"

"Yes?"

"There is another problem I must attend to, but this is all very intriguing. I want you to find out what this power supply is capable of," he got up and begins to walk away, "And professor, save it until the morning."

"Of course, sir," Zixzix bowed.

Walking in the hallway, although he didn't show it, but Goodwin was really peeved at Mina, "So what you're saying is that he just vanished? I assigned you to be his personal handler. Now, if anything unfortunate should happen to him, I'm holding you personally responsible."

Meanwhile, a group of Security employees were walking around a giant room, glancing at nearby monitors. Standing through the window, overseeing them in a smaller room, is a figure standing about three feet(A/N: you can't miss him; he's short). He has a styled head of light-purple hair, a face of light make-up, and wears a buttoned red overcoat. "Someday this will all be…"

"Lazar."

The person called 'Lazar' looked behind him, "Ah, my dear Mr. Goodwin. I've been waiting for you," but his smile turned into a scowls when he glanced at Mina, who gave him the same look before she walked to the other side of the room. "Hmph, I see you've brought the Troublemaker. Well, lucky for her, we found Mr. Atlas," a giant transparent screen floated in place as an image appeared, "but we're not sure who's with him."

"It's the Satellite duelist, Yusei Fudo," Goodwin answered.

"But sir, I thought it was highly illegal to duel against a Satellite duelist."

"That's why what we see here, stays hers. I want to see how Jack handles himself on his own. But, just in case, keep our guards on standby."

* * *

**Meanwhile, at the Kaibadome…**

When they reached their destination, the two D-wheelers parked their runners in the middle of the track, both Yusei and Jack staring down each other.

"This Duel Dome's impressive, isn't it? Television doesn't do it justice," Jack said, "Now imagine it filled with thousands of adoring fans, all of them chanting your name, cheering you on," Jack turns his eyes back to Yusei, "But that's something you're never gonna experience, Yusei. Because after this duel, the only people cheering you on will be your loser friends back at The Satellite. And that's if they all don't turn their backs on you once you return without _their _Stardust Dragon!" he pulls out said card as the floodlights around the track flashed on, nearly blinding Yusei as he shielded his eyes before lowering his arms to see his stolen card.

"I wish I could be there to see their faces when you try explaining to them how you had their card, but got greedy and turned it down in order to duel me. You're gonna regret ever coming here, Yusei, cause I'm gonna beat you with your own card." Jack slips Stardust into his deck and mounts on is runner, attaching his duel disk onto it. Yusei did the same, but before they can play the field spell, they heard the whirring sound of another duel runner.

Then that's when two more runners showed up onto the track. One of then he knows well. "Jason?!" Yusei exclaimed, "What are you doing here?"

"I asked this girl over there if I can duel her," Jason pointed to the female wheeler, "But I was surprised that this dome is opened at this late hour. But what are you doing here?"

Jack, for one, knew who that person was just by looking at her duel runner, "So, you finally decided to leave that tiny little office of yours… Miss Isis Kaiba!"

The wheeler took off her helmet and reveals a dark-toned face. Her auburn hair was tied up in a ponytail. But what Jason couldn't help but notice is her dark-blue eyes letting out a cold stare, "So, you know who I am."

* * *

Back at the HQ, Goodwin, Mina and Lazar are dumbstruck by this sudden turn of events, especially Lazar, "Isis Kaiba?! As in CEO-and-president-of-KaibaCorp Isis Kaiba?!"

"It's not only that," Goodwin plainly said, "It also seems that we have another Satellite that escaped with Yusei Fudo. This should get more intresting."

* * *

"I guess the Spoiled Little Princess decided to come out and play with the commoners, for once," Jack taunted.

"Give me a break; I only came here because this guy…" Isis thumbed behind her to Jason, "…was bugging for someone to play with. I'm just going along so he can leave me alone."

"Is that so?" Jack looked at the wheeler behind her, "Alright then, since we're all here for a little duel, how about we make it a Battle Royale: an all-out turbo duel?"

Isis gave a shout pause before she responded, "Fine by me, the faster in eliminate you three 'turbo-tykes', the better."

"Excellent! Let's get this turbo duel started, shall we?" Everyone mounted on their duel runners and clicked on the engine, then started up the Speed World field spell. "TURBO DUEL, ACTIVATED; AUTO-PILOT, STANDING BY!"

"Now then, try not to get scared, will ya?" Jack mocked to Yusei, "This course can be really rough on first-timers!" When the countdown reached zero, all players reached full-throttle.

"_LET'S RIDE!_"

Tires squealed as the runners raced across the track the battle royale is underway. "Yusei, I always did enjoy dueling you," Jack said, "We've been battling with these monsters in our decks since we were kids. And this, old friend, is gonna be a trip down memory lane!"

Yusei: 4000 (1)

Jack: 4000 (1)

Jason: 4000 (1)

Isis: 4000 (1)

"Here's to history!" Yusei drew, "I summon (1)Quilbolt Hedgehog (800/800) in defense mode!" Yusei brings out a giant brown rodent with bolts sticking out of its back, that all Yusei does and ends his turn.

"Well now, isn't that a blast from the past," Jack drew, "As is this: my (2)Mad Archfiend (1800/0)!" Jack summons a hideous creature with purple hair and a skull seen inside its stomach. "But since he can't attack this round, I think I'll play the speed spell Quick Attack!"

"Quick Attack?!"

"That's right; since no monsters can attack this round in a Battle Royale, I can use this spell card, which is used when I have 2 or more speed counters, to select one of my monsters, and have it attack this turn. Now, Mad Archfiend, stick into that quilbolt!" Using the crushed skull shards in its stomach, Mad Archfiend fired them and destroyed quilbolt. "And in case you've forgotted, when Mad Archfiend battles with a monster with DEF lower then his ATK, the opponent still takes damage!"

Yusei: 3000 (1)

Jack: 4000 (2)

Jason: 4000 (2)

Isis: 4000 (2)

"You're gonna regret doing that, Jack!"

"Yusei, the only thing I'm gonna regret is that this duel isn't being broadcasted to the millions of fans around the globe who cheer for me night after night. They've earned the right to witness my greatest challenge ever, and my greatest victory!" Jack turns his eyes to Yusei's, "You do realize that you're gonna end up losing tonight, don't you?"

"You just keep talking, Jack!" Yusei growled.

* * *

Back at the HQ Lazar smirked as he watched the duel in progress, "There's no need for you to be concerned, Mr. Goodwin," he said, "These Satellites, they are nothing. I'll have them arrested and that will put an end to all of this silliness once and for all. And then, we can shift these Satellites off to The Facility where they won't cause anymore problems. Just say the word and my men will stop this.

* * *

"The green light's mine," Jason drew, "And I summon Genex Gaia (1000/1900) in defense mode! Then I park two cards face-down," Jason sets two reverse cards, ending his turn.

"It's my move then," Isis drew, "First, I'll summon (3)Divine White Paladin (1900/1200) in attack mode," the monster she summoned is a blue-caped warrior wearing white armor from head to toe and it's face covered by a dark-blue visor on a helmet with angel wings decorated on it. It also wields a sword with a golden handle, and a shield with gold trimmings. "Then I'll end my turn with three face-downs."

"I'm up to speed," Yusei drew, "And now I can summon Junk Synchron to the field in attack mode.

Jack mentally laughed at the orange little engineer Yusei just played, 'My blender's got more horsepower.'

"Remember when I said you'd regret taking out my Quilbolt? Well here's why: see, thanks to my Junk Synchron's special ability, I can bring it back to the field," A colorful portal brought the hedgehog to the track.

"Big deal. Yusei, you need to do better!"

"And I will! I tune my Junk Synchron with my Quilbolt Hedgehog to synchro summon Junk Warrior!" When Junk Synchron pulled the ripcord, he started the synchro process as Yusei chanted, "Clustering stars will call upon a new force! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon!" And out of the light tunnel comes… "Junk Warrior, let's rev it up!"

"If that's the best you go, you're in trouble!"

"I think the only thing in trouble right now is your Mad Archfiend. Junk Warrior, send him to the scrap heap!" Junk Warrior uses scrap fist to pound on the archfiend and shatter it in pixels.

Yusei: 3000 (4)

Jack: 3500 (5)

Jason: 4000 (5)

Isis: 4000 (5)

"It's my turn, now!" Jack smirked as he looked at a trap card he drew. "I summon (4)Twin Shield Defender (700/1600) in defense mode," The monster appears as a tribal-looking warrior carrying two shields. It formed the shields into a single one to hide behind it. "Plus I'll throw down a little face-down for later."

Yusei looked at the reverse card as it appeared on his monitor. 'I don't like this at all. It's not like Jack to toy around. He usually cuts right to the chase. What are you planning?'

In the mean time, Jason drew, "It's my turn."

Yusei: 3000 (5)

Jack: 3500 (6)

Jason: 4000 (6)

Isis: 4000 (6)

"And now I'll summon Genex Controller in attack mode!" Jason's favorite tuner appears next to Gaia, "Genex, it's time to give Gaia a tune-up!" As the gears spun inside, Genex transformed into a synchro tunnel which surrounded Gaia as Jason chanted:

"Divested sands form an anxious soul! Become the stone that will become its impregnable vessel! Synchro Summon! Geo Genex (1800/2800), Accelerate!" The rock-embedded mecha appeared out of a bronze-colored light tunnel.

"Now Geo, attack Twin Shield Defender with Magma Fist!" But before it can even get close to Twin Shield, it was crossed by a silver-colored force-field that ran across the track, isolating Jason and Isis from Yusei and Jack.

"I play my face-down, the continuous trap card, Dual Isolation!" Isis revealed her reverse card that shows the same force field running straight in the middle across a race track, "When this card activates, it creates a shield that isolates duelists so each player can only focus on the player they're facing. So it's just you and me now, isn't it?"

"I'll just set a face-down and let go of the wheel for now."

"Better," Isis drew, "I summon (5)Shining Angel (1400/800) in attack mode," An angel with a white tunic and four wing on its back appeared, "Then I'll tune my White Paladin with shining angel!" The angel entered the tunnel as Isis chanted:

"From the heavens of Egypt comes a fearsome beast! Descend from the skies as the powerful Engine of Destruction! Synchro Summon!" as the sky-blue light of the column died down, a giant dragon appears above Isis. It has white scales and blue eyes(sound familiar?) what's really expressive about it is its two silver, angel-like wings on its back and on either side of it's head. "Rise, (6)Blue-Eyes Divine Dragon (3000/2500)!" The dragon roars with an ear-splitting sound as it enters the scene.

"What the heck is that?!"

"This, my friend, is the mighty Blue-Eyes Divine dragon," Isis briefed, "A synchro monster so powerful, there are only three in existence. And lucky for me…" the dragon then glows and surrounded in a white light, and three more shining silhouettes split behind it, forming into two more dragons as the light shattered away. "…they're all in my deck!"

Jason was frightened and awestricken at the same time, "Okay, so how did your dragon do that glowing thing?!"

"It's all thanks to my face-down, the trap Divine Heritage!" Isis reveals another reverse card, which shows the Blue-Eyes Divine Dragon flying upward with two silhouettes of light on either side behind it, "By paying a small price of 3000 life points, I can special summon to more copies of this monster from my extra deck, without even having to synchro summon! And with three divine dragons, it's only a matter of time until your life points to zero!"

One of the Blue-Eyes reared its head as something glowed in its mouth, "Blue-Eyes Divine Dragon, exterminate his Geo Genex with Divine Lightning Stroke!" the dragon unleased a stored beam of white light that completely erased Geo in full brunt.

Yusei: 3000 (6)

Jack: 3500 (7)

Jason: 2800 (6)

Isis: 1000 (7)

"Now Divine Dragon number 2, attack him directly!" the second dragon fired the same attack, but was blocked by a scarecrow with a helmet.

"Sorry, but thanks to my Scrap-Iron Scarecrow, I can negated the attack you dragon just fired, but this card can only be active once per turn," Jason flipped his reverse card back face-down.

"There's still one more dragon to go; let's see if you can get out of this. Blue-Eyes, attack!" the third dragon unleashed its divine lightning at its prey. But just like the first attack, the blast collided full-force. But as the light died out, Jason was still riding.

Yusei: 3000 (6)

Jack: 3500 (7)

Jason: 800 (4)

Isis: 1000 (7)

"Oh, what now?" Isis facefalted.

"Before you attacked with your third Blue-Eyes, I gave it a little present," Jason revealed his other face-down card.

"Of course, the Miniature permanent trap." Isis saw that her third dragon decreased 1/3 in size. "It lowers the ATK power of one monster on the field, and also reduces its level by 1."

Blue-Eyes Divine Dragon(no.3): (2000/2500) Lv. 7

"I guess there's nothing I can do."

"Then I guess it mu turn," Yusei drew.

Yusei: 3000 (7)

Jack: 3500 (8)

Jason: 800 (5)

Isis: 1000 (8)

"I summon Speed Warrior(900/400)! And now his 900 ATK is added to Junk Warrior's," When speed glowed a blue aura, Junk did the same. "But you know that already, don't you, Jack? It's the same combo I used back at The Satellite to get Security off your back. If it weren't for me and my Junk Warrior, you might still be rotting in The Facility."

Junk Warrior: (3200/1300)

"What do you want, a 'thank you'? Well, you're not getting one."

"And now, due to Speed Warrior's special ability, his attack points are doubled (1800/400). So say goodbye to your Twin Shield Defender!" Speed used Hyper Sonic Slash to destroy Twin Shield, but that doesn't stop a purple aura from infecting Junk and affecting his stats.

"And you can say goodbye to half of Junk Warrior's ATK points, now. See, by destroying my Twin Shield Defender, you've activated its special ability. Betcha glad Sector Security wasn't as prepared as I am when you stepped in to save me."

Junk Warrior: (1600/1300)

"Really? Because you've just left yourself wide open for an attack," Yusei was raring, but was hesitant of Jack's reverse card, 'Just as long as that card stays face-down,' "I've been waiting to do this since our last duel, Jack. Junk Warrior, attack him directly!" Junk used Scrap Fist to attack Jack's runner, but Jack didn't seemed phased.

Yusei: 3000 (7)

Jack: 1900 (7)

Jason: 800 (5)

Isis: 1000 (8)

"Remember how you said you saved me, Yusei?"

"Yes."

"Well, the whole thing was a setup to get me closer to your runner. And that dragon card of yours is an addend bonus."

Yusei became angered, "That is a lie!"

"Wishful thinking, Yusei. See, I knew exactly what your duel runner was capable of, and when I saw an opportunity, I took it."

Yusei dejects, 'How could I've been so blind?'

"They say the truth will set you free…" Jack activated his face-down, "…but in this case, it's gonna cost ya; and by activating my Space Gate trap card, you're never gonna get your Stardust Dragon back!" When the Spacegate played, two particles of light wandered around Jack's runner, "Yusei, once this duel is over I'm sending you and your little friend back to The Satellite where garbage like you belongs. And with my Space Gate trap in play, I'm about to kick this turbo duel into overdrive! You see, for each time you attacked me, I got a gate counter. And thanks to you, I'm already up to two! This reminds me of when you helped me back at The Satellite; sure, you thought you were doing the right thing, but in fact, all you did was set yourself up of disappointment just like now!"

"I guess I have no other option but to lay down a face-down," Yusei slips a reverse card onto his duel disk.

"And now your warrior's ATK power returns to normal."

Junk Warrior: (3200/1300)

* * *

Lazar: "See, it's only a matter of time before Jack wins, Mr. Goodwin."

Mina: "This contest is still far from over, sir."

Lazar: "Do you really think this Satellite has a chance of winning? Because so far, this pathetic example of a duelist has done only what Jack has let him do."

Goodwin: 'Don't underestimate this boy, Jack.'

* * *

Jack was enjoying this duel so much, that he just let out a fit of laughter, "C'mon! Get the lead out, Yusei! I got the need! The need, for _speed_!" he stepped on the accelerator and the speed of the runner increased. "You're gonna have to take off your training wheels if you wanna keep up with me!" in fact, it went so fast that Jack was able to ride on the highest length of the curved glass wall while facing his runner to Yusei's. "At least this way I can see you!"

"Just make a move already!"

"Eager for me to end this, are you? Well, don't think it's going to be as quick as I try, because I'm plan on taking my time picking you apart. And when I'm through with you, you're gonna wish you've never left The Satellite!" Jack returned his runner to its original position, "It's my turn!"

Yusei: 3000 (8)

Jack: 1900 (8)

Jason: 800 (6)

Isis: 1000 (9)

"I play the Speed Fusion speed spell! Now, since I have at least 4 speed counters, I can activate its ability to fusion summon a monster that'll have you quaking in your seat!" Jack holds up two monster cards, "Here comes a recipe for disaster: take one part (7)Big Piece Golem (2100/0), and a touch of (8)Medium Piece Golem (1600/0), mix well, and you get…(9)Multiple Piece Golem (2600/1300)!" the monster he summoned was a posable stone behemoth with giant handless arms.

'That's not good,' Yusei thought.

"Golem, send his Speed Warrior in for a permanent pit stop!" the golem obeyed and lowered a fist towards its target and destroyed it.

"In that case, I activate my Defense Draw trap card. And with it in play, all the damage you cooked up with your little golem recipie go to zero, and I get to draw a card," Yusei drew.

"Not bad, and here I was thinking you've thrown in the towel. I guess there's still fire in you after all. Too bad this next move's gonna extinguish any hope you had of winning this duel and getting your Stardust Dragon back. Now then, Yusei, this is where things get interesting: by using my golem's special ability, I can break him down to summon out the two fusion monsters that are in my graveyard," the golem disappeared and Big and Medium Piece golem took it's place, "It's kinda like recycling, which is something that you know all about, living in that dump of a tunnel you call 'home'."

At that moment, the golem's hands held each other to make a space between then which glowed, "And now, I can activate Medium Piece Golem's special ability, which allows me to special summon (9)Small Piece Golem (1100/0) to the field." A smaller rock being came out of the glowing portal. Then it went behind Medium Piece, which went behind Big Piece, and the all roared in unison,

"That's quite the rock collection," Yusei joked.

"Oh, Yusei, you know I always believed in the saying 'the more the merrier', and if you think things are crowded now, wait until I summon out this guy: the tuner monster, (10)Dark Resinator (1300/300)!" Jack summoned a small fiend holding a rod and a tuning fork, "Mow I tune Dark Resinator with my Big Piece Golem to synchro summon my most powerful beast!"

Resinator turned into a synchro tunnel which surrounded the giant golem as Jack chanted, "The ruler's heartbeats will now file through here! Take witness to its creation-shaking power! Synchro Summon!" when the stars aligned, the unleashed a powerful column of orange light that illuminated in front of Jack, "This battle's about to move into the fast lane! Now, feel the power of my Red Dragon Archfiend!" Jack Atlas's headliner debuted with a mighty roar.

"Red Dragon Archfiend?!" Jason exclaimed, "What kind of monster is that!?"

"It's Jack's best Duel Monsters card," Isis answered, "and also one of the most powerful in the whole game."

"You got that right! And I only use it on special occasions, and they don't get more special than this!" Jack gloated, "I wanted my dragon to defeat Yusei… but I thought of a more fitting conclusion: so by sending my Spacegate trap card to my graveyard, I can bring out a new monster to the field that will make our little trip down memory lane that much more memorable: Say hi to my tuner monster, (11) Sinister Sprocket (400/0)!" when the two particles disappeared to form a blue warphole, a new monster came out; it looks like a giant black screw with malicious blue eyes.

"He looks small, but he's got friends, BIG friends! Now I tune my Sinister Sprocket with my Small and Medium Piece Golem, to synchro summon your destruction!" when Sprocket coiled its chain around the two golems and attached itself to them, the formed the synchro column as Jack chanted:

"Clustering wishes will become a new shining star! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon!" inside of the blue column of light, the saw a silhouette of another dragon unfolding out its wings. "He look familiar? He should; after all, this is your (12)Stardust Dragon (2500/2000)!" the giant white dragon came out as it unleashed tiny bits of light from its body.

"It's been much too long," Yusei said as he glanced at his dragon.

* * *

Mina: "_Five_ dragons?!"

Lazar: "That is why Mr. Atlas and Kaiba are our champions; they would never lose from someone from the Satellite sector like these 'Yusei Fudo' and Jason Hutchins'. If you're not going to say anything useful you can at least go get us some non-fat extra-hot lattes."

Mina was going to assert, but she knew better that to go against Vice President of the Security Maintenance Bureau. So she spun around and stormed out of the room without saying a word.

Lazar: "Temper, temper."

"Silence, you two. This is just getting interesting," Goodwin looked back at the screen, "Now let's see if they can finish this off."

* * *

Jack was enjoying this torment so much. He had both his and Yusei's dragon cards on the field. It's so ironic to him that he chuckled a but, but then went into a fit of laughter, "Kukukuku, heh heh heh heh, AH HA HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! You wanted Stardust Dragon so bad? Well, here it is! It's like they always say: be careful what you wish for!" He rode straight around the track laughing, ready to unleash the fury of both dragons onto Yusei Fudo.

**TO BE CONTINUED…

* * *

**

**Jack: Let's say we kick this Jukebox into overdrive!**

I've got the need for speed (the need for speed)

I've got the will to win.

Success is guaranteed.

So let the games begin.

You can lock me up - you can tie me down.

Throw away the key.

Still breakin' outta this one horse town.

Yeah, you can't catch me.

Revving up – driving hard.

I'll put my faith in the cards.

Got the need for speed (the need for speed).

I've got the will to win.

Success is guaranteed.

So let the games begin.

Nothing's gonna stop me now (stop me now).

Once I take the lead.

Got to feed my need for speed.

My need for speed.

* * *

**Duelmon Database**:

**Quillbolt Hedgehog**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect]LV2ATK/800DEF/800  
**Monster Class-Type:** EARTH

**Description:** If you control a face-up Tuner Monster, you can Special Summon this card from your Graveyard. If this card was Summoned this way, remove it from play when it is removed from the field.

**Mad Archfiend**

**Stats:** [Fiend/Effect] LV4 ATK/1800 DEF/ 0  
** Type:** DARK

**Description:** During battle between this attacking card and a Defense Position monster whose DEF is lower than the ATK of this card inflict the difference as Battle Damage to your opponent. When this face-up Attack Position card is selected as an attack target change it to Defense Position.

**(3) ****Divine White Paladin**

**Stats: **[Warrior/Tuner] LV4 ATK/1900 DEF/1200  
**Type: **LIGHT

Effect: This card cannot be used as a Synchro Material Monster, except for the Synchro Summon of a Light-Attribute Synchro Monster. If this card is sent to the Graveyard for the Synchro Summon of "Blue-Eyes Divine Dragon", that monster gains the following effect: Once per turn, when this monster attacks a monster your opponent controls, destroy it without applying damage calculation.

**(4) Twin-Shield Defender**

**Stats:** [Warrior/Effect] LV4 ATK/ 700 DEF/1600  
** Type:** EARTH

**Description:** If this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard, you can halve the ATK of 1 monster your opponent controls until the End Phase.

**(5)** **Shining Angel**

**Strength:** Angel/Effect Level 4 ATK/1400 DEF/800  
**Type: **LIGHT

**Description:**When this card is sent to the Graveyard as a result of battle, you can Special Summon 1 LIGHT monster with and ATK of 1500 or less in face-up Attack Position from your Deck. Then shuffle your Deck.

**(6) ****Blue Eyes Divine Dragon**

[Dragon/Synchro/Effect] LV8 ATK/3000 DEF/2500  
**Type**: LIGHT  
Synchro Requirements: 1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters.  
Effect: This card's name is treated as "Blue-Eyes White Dragon" while face-up on the field and in your graveyard.

**(7) ****Big Piece Golem**

**Stats:** [Rock/Tuner] LV5 ATK/2100 DEF/ 0

**Type:** EARTH

**Description:** If your opponent controls a monster and you control no monsters, you may Normal Summon this card without Tribute.

**(8) ****Medium Piece Golem**

**Stats:** [Rock/Effect] LV4 ATK/1600 DEF/ 0  
**Monster Class-Type:** EARTH

**Description:** If you control a face-up "Big Piece Golem", when you Summon this card, you can Special Summon 1 "Small Piece Golem" from your Deck. The effect of the monster Special Summoned by this effect is negated.

**(9) ****Multiple Piece Golem**

**Stats:** [Rock/Fusion/Effect] LV7 ATK/2600 DEF/1300  
**Monster Class-Type:** EARTH

**Fusion Requirements:** "Big Piece Golem" + "Medium Piece Golem"  
At the end of the Battle Phase, if this card attacked or was attacked, you can return it to the Extra Deck. Then, if all of the Fusion Material Monsters that were used for the Fusion Summon of this card are in your Graveyard, you can Special Summon them.

**(10) ****Dark Resonator**

**Stats:** [Fiend/Tuner] LV3 ATK/1300 DEF/ 300  
**Monster Class-Type:** DARK

**Description:** Once per turn, if this card would be destroyed by battle, it is not destroyed. (Damage calculation is applied normally).

**(11) ****Sinister Sprocket**

**Stats:** [Fiend/Tuner] LV1 ATK/ 400 DEF/ 0  
**Monster Class-Type:** DARK

**Description:** If this card is sent to the Graveyard for the Synchro Summon of a DARK Synchro Monster, you can destroy 1 face-up Spell or Trap Card.

**(12) ****Stardust Dragon**

**Stats:** [Dragon/Synchro/Effect] LV8 ATK/2500 DEF/2000  
**Monster Class-Type:** WIND

**Synchro Requirements: **1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters

**Description:** You can Tribute this card to negate the activation of a Spell Card, Trap Card or Effect Monster's effect that destroys a card(s) on the field and destroy that card. If you negate an effect this way, you can Special Summon this card from your Graveyard during your End Phase.

* * *

**Jason: Now let's look what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5Ds:**

**Jack: You gotta get aggressive if you wanna win.**

**Lazar: Mr. Atlas seems to be toying with this urchin. I do love his playing style.**

**Jack: Haven't you learned, Yusei? You can't just cower and hide and hope to survive.**

**Yusei: And now I'm gonna rev things up with **_**my **_**Stardust Dragon!**

**Isis: I call forth the legendary…**

**Yusei: What's with this pain in my arm?! What keeps causing it?!**

**Next time on Stardust Accelerator: A Blast from the Past-Part 2**

**Goodwin: The mighty beast has emerged from its slumber.**


	12. A Blast from the Past: Part 2

Same disclaimer applied

"Talking"

'Thinking'

_Flashback_

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

**Yusei: Now let's get up to speed with YuGiOh 5Ds:**

Mina: "_Five_ dragons?!"

Lazar: "That is why Mr. Atlas and Kaiba are our champions; they would never lose from someone from the Satellite sector like these 'Yusei Fudo' and Jason Hutchins'. If you're not going to say anything useful you can at least go get us some non-fat extra-hot lattes."

Mina was going to assert, but she knew better that to go against Vice President of the Security Maintenance Bureau. So she spun around and stormed out of the room without saying a word.

Lazar: "Temper, temper."

"Silence, you two. This is just getting interesting," Goodwin looked back at the screen, "Now let's see if they can finish this off."

Jack was enjoying this torment so much. He had both his and Yusei's dragon cards on the field. It's so ironic to him that he chuckled a but, but then went into a fit of laughter, "Kukukuku, heh heh heh heh, AH HA HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! You wanted Stardust Dragon so bad? Well, here it is! It's like they always say: be careful what you wish for!" He rode straight around the track laughing, ready to unleash the fury of both dragons onto Yusei Fudo.

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 9: A Blast from the Past**

**Part 2: Crimson Debut

* * *

**

When we last left off Jack Atlas was about to assail his former friend Yusei Fudo with his two mighty dragons: Red Dragon Archfiend and Stardust Dragon, "When I offered to give you back your precious Stardust Dragon you should've just taken it and run back home to The Satellite. But no, you just had to prove that you can hold your own with the Master of Faster."

"I'm gonna do more than hold my own, Jack."

"I think you should wait a little but, Yusei," Jason drew, "because it's my turn."

**Yusei: 3000 (9)**

**Jack: 1900 (9)**

**Jason: 800 (7)**

**Isis: 1000 (10)**

"Fist off, I'll play the face-down, Birthright! This let's me call on a normal monster from my grave and bring it out to the field. So I summon my Genex Controller (1400/1200)! And with him in play, I summon Genex Undine(1200/600)! And when she's successfully summoned, I can discard a Water monster from my deck to add a Genex Controller to my hand." Jason's marine mecha appeared as Jason took two cards from his deck. "And now, Genex Controller, let's give Undine a little tune-up!" Spinning its gears, Controller surrounded Undine with a synchro tunnel as Jason chanted:

"Divested bubbles form a drifting soul; become the seas that will navigate its journey! Synchro Summon! Hydro Genex (2300/1800), Accelerate!"

Jason's bigger blue mecha appeared, "Hydro, attack Divine Dragon No. 3! Go, Hydro Sphere!" Hydro channeled the moisture in the air to increase the sphere's size with liquid as she threw it at the smallest dragon. The sphere skewered it before it shattered into pixels of light.

**Yusei: 3000 (9)**

**Jack: 1900 (9)**

**Jason: 800 (7)**

**Isis: 700 (10)**

"And here's my favorite part about her: when Hydro Genex destroys a monster, I gain life points equal to that monster's ATK points!"

**Yusei: 3000 (9)**

**Jack: 1900 (9)**

**Jason: 2800 (7)**

**Isis: 1000 (10)**

"With that done, I park one card face-down. You're up!"

"It's my move, then," Isis drew, 'Hmm, this guy thinks I'll try to attack Hydro Genex with my two Blue-Eyes'. That's why he set that reverse card; it must be to counter one of my dragons. Either that or he'll use it to alter the strength of any of our monsters.' "I won't use my dragons, this time. Instead, I'm gonna use a whole new kind of dragon. But first I'll play the trap card, Call of the Haunted, to bring back my Blue-Eyes Divine Dragon." Isis' dragon revived from the graveyard, in the same size as the other two. "Next, I play Speed Fusion. And just like Jack did to summon Multiple Piece Golem, I'm going to fuse my three Blue-Eyes Divine Dragons…" All three monsters jumped into the speed spell as it swirled their bodies together, and released from a beam of blue light came out as an even bigger dragon. It has blue scales and large dragon wings. It also has three heads, each one with an identical pinstripe on its forehead, "…the (1) Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon (4500/3800)!"

"Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon!? But that's impossible; you need three Blue-Eyes White Dragons to summon that thing!" Yusei exclaimed, "Does a Divine Dragon have an effect that treats it as a Blue-Eyes White Dragon?"

"Someone's starting to catch on. Blue-Eyes Divine Dragon's special ability allows it to be treated as the actual Blue-Eyes whether it's on the field, or in my graveyard. But this dragon's just the beginning. Now I release my ultimate dragon to call out a more powerful beast." As the dragon disappeared in a multi-colored portal, a new dragon took place from it. "I call forth the legendary…" It has white armor encased all around its body. Its flat, plane-like wings has lines like veins that faintly glowed a light-blue. And it has a blue orb encased on its torso and either wing, "…(2)Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon (3000/2500)!"

"3000 ATK points?!"

"That's right, and it only grows stronger. See, for every Dragon-Type monster in my graveyard, it gains 300 ATK points. And right now, I have 4, which allows my shining dragon to gain 1200 ATK points."

Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon: (4200/2500)

"And I'm not stopping there; I activate the speed spell: Shrink! For a small cost of 3 spell counters, I can use this card's ability to reduce the ATK power of one of your monsters by half," Isis made an example as Hydro's size was halved along with her ATK points.

Hydro Genex: (1150/1800)

"And now I have more than enough power to take out the rest of your life points. Shining Dragon!" Blue-Eyes' body glowed so bright it can be seen from a distance across the city. "Attack Hydro Genex and end this!" The shining dragon rocketed towards Jason.

"Aren't you forgetting something? I can still activate Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!" Jason played his reverse card, but it let out an electrical short-circuiting as soon as it was flipped up.

"Of course I didn't forget. In fact, that's what my dragon's other special ability come in, which negates any card that targets it and renders it useless, so your little scarecrow isn't so scary after all, now is it?" Jason's reverse card flipped back down. Now there's nothing standing between me and my victory," When the dragon bombarded Jason with a bright explosion, Isis sure she won, but her monitor said otherwise:

**Yusei: 3000 (10)**

**Jack: 1900 (10)**

**Jason: 2800 (8)**

**Isis: 1000 (8)**

"Sorry, Isis," Jason said as he came out of the cloud of smoke and dust, "But I activate my face-down: the trap card, Genex Bulward!" Jason opened up a reverse card that showed a transparent form of Genex Gaia generating an energy shield protecting an unknown duelist. "But for this card to activate its effect, I have to remove a level 3 or lower Genex monster in my graveyard from the game," Jason took out Genex Gaia from his grave slot and pocketed it. "But in return, all damage dealt to me from your attack is reduced to zero. And I also get to draw cards equal to the removed monster's level. And since Genex Gaia is a level 3, I get to draw three more cards." Jason drew.

"That was just Beginner's Luck; but pretty soon your luck's gonna run out. I'll just call it a turn."

"Then it's my turn," Yusei drew, "I summon Shield Warrior (800/1600) to the field in defense mode," Yusei's spear-and-shield monster knelt beside him, "Next, I'll also switch my Junk Warrior into defense mode. Your move, 'old buddy'."

"Leaving both monsters in defense mode? You gotta get aggressive if you wanna win. But then again I shouldn't be surprised; you never were much of a fighter," Both Jack and Yusei's runners crossed paths with each other. This was the closest eye contact they had since the contest started.

Lazar: "We must end this charade. If the paparazzi find Jack dueling some Satellites, his reputation will be ruined."

"Haven't you learned, Yusei?" Jack drew, "You can't just cower and hide and hope to survive. And here's proof: Red Dragon Archfiend can wipe out all your monsters in defense mode. So say goodbye to your little friend! Go, Absolute Powerforce!" Red Dragon's claws engulfed in flames as they made contact and destroyed both Shield Warrior and Junk Warrior.

"Seriously, Yusei, didn't you learn anything back in the schoolyard, when those mean, mean bullies would come around and threaten you and your little auto-shop pals for your lunch money? What did not fighting back ever get you: a black eye and an empty stomach, that's what. Didn't you sneak out of The Satellite to get even with me? I mean, if you came here to 'throw down' or whatever, why are you acting like that scared kid from the playground?!"

'It's called strategy.'

"Well, now that you got no monsters on your field, Stardust Dragon can swoop right in and attack you directly! Hope this doesn't hurt too much."

"Sure you don't," Yusei mumble sarcastically.

Stardust breathed a sparkling white fore from its mouth and took some of Yusei's life points and speed counters.

**Yusei: 3000 (10)**

**Jack: 1900 (12)**

**Jason: 2800 (10)**

**Isis: 1000 (10)**

"So the monster that used to be yours, the one you came here to get back from me, is now the one taking you down," Jack taunted, "I'm sure if you thought this would've happened, you would've never crawled out of that dump you call home."

* * *

Mina: "Mr. Atlas is fabulous. He's controlling both of those dragons with incredible skill."

Lazar: "Well, what else did you expect from the best?"

Goodwin: 'If what I hope happens, a whole lot more.'

* * *

"I got the front seat," Jason drew, "I summon Genex Controller (1400/1200) in defense position, then I end my turn with three face-downs."

"It's my move," Isis drew, "Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon, attack with Shining Nova!" Blue-  
Eyes' metallic body lit up again, but its light was disrupted by a massive sound wave.

"Sorry, Isis, but I play my face-down," Jason flipped his reverse card, "Threatening Roar disables your dragon from attacking this round."

"Oh, drag," Isis complained sarcastically, "This Blue-Eyes can negate card effects that targets the dragon itself, but his ability doesn't work on effects that target multiple cards. I guess I'll end my turn with a face-down."

"Then it's my move," Yusei drew, "I summon (3)Sonic Chick (300/300) in defense mode," The card he played is a small pink road runner with pink feathers and red running shoes.

"Just like back at school," Jack said, "You waist all your time hanging out with chickens."

"Well, at least I know this 'chicken' isn't going to double-cross his best friend, and then scurry away in the middle of the night. In fact, this 'chicken's' sticking around for the long haul," Yusei sets two reverse cards, "Next, I place two cards face-down. You're up!"

Jack accelerated his runner a bit as he got close to Yusei, "Let me ask you something, Yusei, how do you think this duel of ours is gonna end? Let's kid ourselves and say you actually have a chance at out-dueling me, and that you somehow manage to win. Then what are you gonna do? You haven't really thought this little 'revenge' fantasy through, have you?" Jack drew a card, "Well, let me tall you what _is _gonna happen: you're gonna lose this duel, and then I'm gonna press a little button on my runner, at which point, an entire Security team will arrest you and you little friend and shift you off to The Facility. So much for revenge. And speaking of you losing, Red Dragon Archfiend, attack Sonic Chick!"

Red Dragon swiped a flaming claw at the little bird, but is blocked by its little barrier that instantly formed right before contact. "Too bad, buddy; your little chickadee's special ability will get trumped by the power of my Red Dragon Archfiend. Remember, it can wipe the field clean of any monsters you have in defense mode. I told you, Yusei, you gotta get aggressive, like this!" Sonic was engulfed in flames, but they were repelled by the barrier before it disappeared.

Lazar: "What just happened? That chicken was supposed to get fried."

"Always thinking, aren't you, Yusei?"

"It's what I do best! I'm just surprised you didn't remember this classic back when we dueled for fun," Yusei reveals one of his reverse cards.

"Oh, yeah. Your Remote Revenge trap card. I forgot you had that."

"It seems there's a lot you've forgot about, Jack, so here's a little refresher course on what this trap can do: first it deflects your attack; but that deflection's just the beginning. Once it does that, it destroys every monster on your field in attack mode. And aren't both your dragons in attack mode? So how's that for getting aggressive?" crimson flames rocketed from Sonic Chick and aimed straight towards Red Dragon.

"You have a thing with revenge, don't you? Too bad for you, just like your attempt to get revenge on me, this attack is gonna fail miserably. Because Stardust Dragon's taking one for the team," Stardust shielded Red Dragon with its own body as the flames engulfed it. "That's one of Stardust Dragon's special abilities. If you activate a card with the power to destroy all my monsters, Stardust Dragon can save all the others by sacrificing itself. How does it feel knowing you've destroyed your favorite beast?" When the flames died out, Stardust's body starts disintegrating slowly into tiny particles of light. "So much for Stardust Dragon, but I guess it had to go like that in order for Red Dragon to stay on the field. Hey, does that remind you of another situation, Yusei? Think about it; this is like how I had to step on you to escape The Satellite."

* * *

Lazar: "Mr. Atlas seems to be toying with this urchin. I do love his playing style."

* * *

"Now I place two cards face-down," Jack sets two reverse cards, ending his turn. "And with that done, I think I'll bring back _my _Stardust Dragon so you can get another peek at it for old time's sake. Now take a long, hard look, Yusei. Because after this duel, you're never gonna see it again!" Stardust cane to the field as it roared out of a blue portal.

"Maybe you can get another chance to destroy the very beast you're trying to win back from me. Y'know, Yusei, with friends like you, who needs enemies? And with both dragons back on my field, it looks like this battle of ours has gone full-circle, hasn't it?"

"…actually…" Yusei smiled under his helmet, "…not quite, Jack. I activate my trap card: Harmonia Mirror!" his trap released, a beautiful woman holding a giant mirror, catching the reflection of Stardust Dragon. Jack gasped in shock. "Check this out: because you just summoned Stardust Dragon to your field, using a method other than the usual synchro summon, I can use the power of Harmonia Mirror to get Stardust fighting on my side instead, so welcome back, old friend," the mirror shone brightly and captured Stardust, sealing the dragon inside it.

"That's no biggie," Jack replied plainly, "It's like I said earlier: I don't need it. I was merely using it to make this duel more interesting."

"Well, you did, Jack. And now I'm gonna rev things up with my Stardust Dragon!" In an instant, Stardust appeared over a flash of light over Yusei.

"Not bad, Yusei. Maybe you did learn a thing or two since our days together in The Satellite. So we got Red Dragon Archfiend versus Stardust Dragon, in a fight to the finish!" both dragons roared to await their long awaited clash.

"Then, I guess it's my turn," Jason drew.

**Yusei: 500 (12)**

**Jack: 1900 (12)**

**Jason: 2800 (12)**

**Isis: 1000 (12)**

"Since I got Genex Controller already on my field, I can summon out Genex Heat(2000/1300) directly from my hand!" Jason's furnace mecha appeared. "And now, since I got both Controller and Heat on the field, it's time for a little synchro summon!" Controller surrounded Heat with a synchro tunnel as Jason chanted:

"Divested sparks form a lost soul; become the torch that will light its forgotten path! Synchro Summon! Thermal Genex (2400/1200), Accelerate!"

His bigger furnace appeared out of the synchro tunnel. "And now that he's synchro summoned, I can activate this: the trap card: Genex Soul!" Jason played the card that he used to escape the pipeline. "Whit this, Thermal's gains the ATK of all non-tuner monsters used to summon it!" Thermal flared up as a silhouette of Genex Heat appeared beside him.

Thermal Genex: (4600/1200)

"Not bad," Isis commented, "but even if you do manage to destroy my Shining Dragon, you'll only set yourself up for a major beating. So if you want to get pass me, you'll need to do a little better."

"I'm just getting started, because by removing 2 of my speed counters…"

**Yusei: 500 (12)**

**Jack: 1900 (12)**

**Jason: 2800 (10)**

**Isis: 1000 (12)**

"I can activate the speed spell: Pot of Avarice; and with this in play, I can select 5 monster cards in my graveyard, return them to my deck, shuffle it up, and draw 2 cards," And by returning his two Genex Controllers, along with his two Genex Undines and Genex Heat to his deck, Jason drew two cards and took them into his hand, "Next up, is the speed spell: Speed Energy! And by removing 2 more counters…"

**Yusei: 500 (12)**

**Jack: 1900 (12)**

**Jason: 2800 (8)**

**Isis: 1000 (12)**

"…I can give a power boost to one of my monsters; 200 ATK points for every speed counter I have left. And since I got 8 to spare…" Thermal was covered by a sparkling blue aura as his flames released more rapidly.

Thermal Genex: (6200/1200)

"And with over 6000 ATK points, I guess it's time to 'see ya next duel!' Thermal Genex, attack Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon with Thermal Furnace Blaze!" Thermal channeled every internal heat into one single point, and then fired as a furious cannon, which took the Shining Dragon by full brunt and exploded along with it.

"This duel isn't over yet," Isis removed a card from her graveyard slot. It depicts a small winged girl with white hair, in a light-blue gown surrounded inside a glowing transparent sphere, "By removing (4)Divine White Spirit (600/500) from my graveyard, I can reduce any and all battle damage this turn to zero," A shield appeared around Isis as it defended her against the leftover flames and debris. "And that's not all; since you destroyed my precious Blue-Eyes, I can avenge her with this!" Isis reveals a reverse card which depicts the Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon appearing to be self-destructing in its post-dormant blinding light.

"What is that?!"

"It's my trap card: Nova Big Bang! I told you you'd be setting yourself up when you destroyed my Shining Dragon, and now I'm gonna show you how this trap's going to help take out the rest of your life points: first it destroys all cards on the field, but that's just the tip of the iceberg. After that, it hits you with 300 points of damage for each monster destroyed," Isis' reverse card lit up and unleashed an explosion of blinding white light, this destroying Thermal Genex and taking out a bit of Jason's life points.

**Yusei: 500 (12)**

**Jack: 1900 (12)**

**Jason: 2500 (8)**

**Isis: 1000 (12)**

"And that's not all; soon after every card's destroyed, and all the damage is inflicted, this trap's final effect allows me to special summon all three of my Blue-Eyes Divine Dragons from my graveyard!"

"Say what?!"

Isis removed her three dragons from her graveyard and put them back on the field, "These dragons are not done with you," the dragons appeared in three different multi-colored portals, "And they will never die until every single ATK point my dragons possess wipe each and every one of your life points into the wind!"

Blue-Eyes Divine Dragon: (3000/2500) x3

'Oh man,' Jason thought, 'It's been hard enough wrestling with those dragons the first time, I don't know if I could keep up with then again,' he inserted two cards into his duel runner, "I guess I'll set a couple of face-downs, and that's it."

"That's it is right; because on this next move…" The moment Isis drew, "…I'm gonna make sure you don't pull any smart moves, because by removing 8 speed counters…"

**Yusei: 500 (12)**

**Jack: 1900 (12)**

**Jason: 2500 (9)**

**Isis: 1000 (4)**

"…I activate the speed spell: Wrath of Divinity!" a spell card appeared which shows the Blue-Eyes White Dragon in a bright aura firing its divine lightning stroke, "With this, whenever a Blue-Eyes White Dragon attacks you can't activate any spells or traps until the end of the Battle Phase!" Blue-Eyes became enveloped in the same energy as the art on the card, "Now, my Divine Dragons, take out the rest of his life points!"

The dragons tried to aim and fire, but the moment after Isis' command, three giant bolts of lightning struck down from the clear sky onto the Divine Dragons. "What's going on?! Why aren't they attacking?" That's when she noticed that one of Jason's reverse cards were flipped, "Of course, the Thunder of Ruler trap card," 'It prevents all my monsters from attacking this turn; it's also played during the standby phase, so my speed spell had no effect on it."

"Face it, Isis," Jason said, "It'll take a whole lot more than that to beat me."

'We'll see about that,' "Fine; I'll end my turn for now, but next time, it's no more Ms. Nice-Girl. My Blue-Eyes will attack and that'll be that.

With her turn ended, Jack and Yusei are about to clash with their dragons, ""Looks like you'll finally get the chance to see whose dragon is mightier, Yusei."

"And you'll finally get the chance to see the duelist I've become. Remember that talk you gave after you beat me in our last duel?"

(Flashback)

_"Did he... just lose?"_

_"He did. And do you know why our friend just lost?" Jack walked over to his fallen rival, "Because his deck has no balance. And without balance, one cannot be a complete duelist. But you know that already, don't you, Yusei?_

(End flashback)

"I didn't want to admit it, but you were right that day," Yusei lifts up his right fist, "Those words hurt, but that taught me a valuable lesson."

"Oh really, Yusei? And what did they teach you?"

"That in order to be the best I can be, I have to believe in the power of every card in my deck. And ever since that day, I thought about that duel we had over and over again, trying to implement new strategies and combinations that I would've never thought possible."

"Well, Yusei, actions speak louder than words; so let's just see what that deck of yours is capable of."

"You got it, Jack; and with Stardust Dragon, the sky's the limit!" Stardust unleashed a mighty roar that echoed across the Kaibadome.

* * *

"This Satellite doesn't know when to quit, does he?" Lazar dismayed, then smiled, "Well, perhaps, I should send a Security team to end this for him, Mr. Good—"

Unfortunately, Goodwin gestured his hand to prevent him from doing so.

"Hmm…"

* * *

With Stardust on his side, it looks like Yusei might actually have a chance to win; but the question is: Does Jack think so? "Kukukuku, hehehehe, hahahahahahahahahah! Lemme get this straight: now that you got Stardust on your side, you'll actually get a chance at beating me? Well, you don't. I'm the best. You'll never defeat me no matter how many Stardust Dragons you have on your field, got that? Now, bring it on!"

All the D-wheelers accelerated across the track when Yusei took his turn. "I got the green light." Yusei looks at the card he drew, then beside him at Jack.

**Yusei: 500 (12)**

**Jack: 1900 (12)**

**Jason: 2500 (10)**

**Isis: 1000 (5)**

"And I activate my speed spell: Silver Contrails!" Yusei slaps a spell card onto his duel disk as its whurling winds cover Stardust in a silver aura. "Whenever I have 5 or more speed counters, I can increase the power of a WIND attribute monster by 1000. Now, because Stardust Dragon is a WIND attribute monster, he gains a power boost!"

Stardust Dragon: (3500/2000)

"It's time our beasts tussle! Stardust ices Red Dragon Archfiend; go, Cosmic Flare!" Stardust unleashes a blast of sparkling silver fire towards the red dragon as it shield itself with its crossed arms, and at that moment, Yusei experience a sudden throbbing on his right arm, with Jack suffering the same result. "What's going on? Why's my arm hurting? What is this?!"

Jason was experiencing the same thing as well, but that pain was even greater than what Yusei and Jack must be feeling. It was then when a sudden jolt ran through his head; another fragment of his memory has been uncovered:

(Flashback)

_Jason could see nothing but pure darkness. That was because he's been enduring too much excruciating agony to keep his eyes open. _

_He was strapped onto a steel platform 45-degrees standing, with his wrist, ankles, and even his head bounded in metal clamps. His right arm feels like it's being carved into, as a laser drew a foreign shape on it. _

_Aside from his screaming, he could hear a voice coming from a speaker somewhere in the room. It was gentle-like and elderly. "Just a few more minutes, Subject: D5-Epsilon. When you learn to control the power we're giving you, all of the anguish you're feeling will be worth it."_

(End flashback)

When Jason snapped back into reality, he was welcomed by an image of Red Dragon Archfiend knocking away Stardust's Cosmic Flare. "Sorry, Yusei; better luck next time," Jack said as Sonic Chick shattered into pixels of light.

"What happened to Sonic Chick?!" Yusei demanded.

"My Synchro Deflector trap card happened," Jack revealed his reverse card as said trap card, "With this trap card I can deflect an attack against a synchro monster; and then use the energy to vaporize the monster on your field with the fewest ATK points. And now that you've attacked, the effects of your Silver Contrails speed spell wears off, which means your Stardust Dragon loses its precious power boost."

Stardust Dragon: (2500/2000)

"But it's still my turn, Jack and I'm far from done. So next, from my hand, I summon (5)Ghost Gardna in defense mode!" Yusei played a white specter-like warrior with its giant clawed hands up in front of him.

"Trying to protect your little dragon, are ya?"

"I place two cards face-down," Yusei sets two reverse cards, "Your move." Then another jolt of pain went through Yusei's arm.

* * *

Mina: "Incoming call, sir."

Goodwin: "Put it on speaker."

Mina pressed a button on a nearby beeping phone as an image of Zixzix appeared.

Zixzix: "You may want to find a large solid object, and then up behind it."

Goodwin: "What are you talking about?"

Zixzix showed the generator as it exerted numerous large bolts of energy. "A major power surge. It's out of control! If this keeps up, thing are going to get _CRAZYYYY!!!"_

Goodwin: "Record all your findings."

Zixzix regained his posture and bowed, "As you wish, sir." The screen then disappeared.

* * *

"Time to end this, Yusei!" the moment Jack drew a card out, he winched as a sudden throb of pain returned to his arm, but then sneered as he look at the card he drew. "I think Red Dragon Archfiend wants to attack Stardust Dragon!" Red Dragon roared on command.

Jack raised a finger at the evening sky, "Let's go! Red Dragon Archfiend," then at Stardust, "tear that Stardust Dragon apart! Go, Scorching Crimson Flare!" Red Dragon charged at Stardust with a burning claw, but was intercepted by the Ghost Gardna. "Hey, Ghost Gardna, down in front!"

"Ghost Gardna's special ability allows it to draw your monster's attention, and become the target of your attack. So Red Dragon Archfiend won't be attacking Stardust this time around." Ghost took the full brunt of the attack and burned to ashes. "And after it gets destroyed—"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know. I watched you use Ghost Gardna plenty of times back at The Satellite. And this is the part where you tell me how: _'When Ghost Gardna gets destroyed, it can lower the ATK point of one of its opponent's monsters by 1000 until the end of the turn.'_ Did you seriously think I didn't know that was coming?"

Red Dragon Archfiend: (2000/2500)

"Well, did you know this was coming? I activate a trap card…" Yusei reveals a reverse card, "…Counterattack Beacon. And it activates when one of your monsters attacks one of mine, and manages it to destroy it on battle. Once this trap card activates, it not only give one of my monsters 500 ATK points, it forces the same monster to attack even though it's not my turn." A long bolt of lightning swirls around Stardust as its power increases.

Stardust Dragon: (3000/2000)

"Very interesting," Jack commented, "So now Stardust has more ATK points than my Dragon."

"That's right. Can you see where this is going?" both dragons confront each other as they rare for battle. "Stardust Dragon, att—" pain returned to Yusei, as well as Jack and Jason, "—aaahhrrgg! Attack!"

Stardust roared as it prepared to breathe its Cosmic Flare at the other dragon again, "Not bad Yusei, but not bad is not good enough! Not when I got…" Jack reveals one of his face-downs, "…the Prideful Roar trap card! For the low cost of 1000 life points, I can give Red Dragon Archfiend 1300 more ATK points!" Red Dragon roared as it surrounds itself in a red aura.

**Yusei: 500 (12)**

**Jack: 900 (12)**

**Jason: 2500 (11)**

**Isis: 1000 (6)**

Red Dragon Archfiend: (3300/2500)

* * *

Lazar: "Oh, dear me! This is a risky strategy even for someone as great as Jack Atlas. He's either very confident or very foolish. Or maybe a little bit of both, but either way, this could end up embarrassing him."

* * *

"It's showtime!" Jack's Red Dragon breathed bright scorching flames as Yusei's Stardust intercepted with Cosmic Flare. When the two attacks collided, neither dragon was giving up. The pain returned to Yusei, Jason and Jack, with even more brunt than before.

The dragons held each other the best they could, until the cross fire exploded into a bright flash of light. That was when streams of bright crimson energy appeared. Stardust and Red Dragon, in the meantime, came out of the explosion unscathed.

"What's going on?!" Jack demanded, "That attack should've destroyed Stardust Dragon! Red Dragon Archfiend has more ATK points! It's more powerful!" Yusei then reveals a monster card the know as… "Shield Warrior?! You can't play that card! I sent that to your graveyard!"

"Which is just where his special ability can activate! All I have to do is remove it from play, and then I can use its power to save a monster from being destroyed! But don't worry, Jack. Your dragon still hits me for 300 life points."

**Yusei: 300 (12)**

**Jack: 900 (12)**

**Jason: 2500 (11)**

**Isis: 1000 (6)**

"And I'm pretty sure your Prideful Roar's effect wears off after an attack; so Red Dragon Archfiend is back to its original power level."

Red Dragon Archfiend: (3000/2500)

"I can still finish you off, with a speed spe—" but Jack was interrupted by the same pain in his arm, but even stronger that before. "Gah! Not again!"

Yusei had the same problem, "What's with this pain in my arm?! What's keeps causing it?!" suddenly, Yusei saw that his arm emitted a light in the shape of a face of some sort, "What the, why's my arm glowing?!"

"Hey, Yusei, you doing this?!" the same thing happened to Jack, but a pair of wings appeared in the same shape as his mark on his arm.

Jason was experiencing the same thing as well, but his mark appeared a swirling diamond with three small lines sticking out of it, appearing as something shaped like a human heart. He couldn't take the anguish any more so he screamed at the top of his lungs.

* * *

Back at the research lab, the generator produces even more bolts than it cold handle. It looks ready to blow a fuse. "Professor, the reactor has reached its max!" a random assistant shouted, this place is gonna blow!"

* * *

The random strips of giant crimson suddenly formed together, and a glowing yellow dot appeared on it. Some parts formed wings, while others formed the face, while others formed a tail, with the tip being the same shape as Yusei's glowing mark.

"What is that?!"

"What kind of trick is this, Yusei? What are you trying to pull?!"

The crimson finally formed into a giant dragon as it screeched after its debut. Jack's pupils glowed a right red, while the same happened to Yusei and Jason. The dragon's power actually created a whirlwind as it practically blew the D-wheelers off-course.

Isis was seeing the whole thing as the events carve into her mind, "What kind of cheap trick is this?!"

* * *

What ever Zixzix found was so incredible that he just had to show to Goodwin, "I don't know what I'm looking at! The core reactor's going crazy!! See, speeds of time are bending in directions I never imagined possible! Atoms are smashing into each other!! Quantum particles are colliding in unstable ways!!!"

* * *

"Whose dragon is that?!" Jack glared daggers at Yusei; he wasn't going to lose his focus, "I'll teach you to play tricks with me! i activate a speed spell: End of Storm!" Jack plays a spell card that shows Nightshroud unleashing a deadly shockwave.

"What are you thinking?! We gotta stop!!" Yusei pleaded.

"No way, Yusei!!!"

"Yusei's right, Isis; whatever we're doing, we gotta finish this some other time!!"

"You think I'm gonna throw in the towel just because of some bizarre light show?! I don't quit until there's a winner! As much as I would hate to admit it, Jack is right!"

"Alright, fine..."

"...but I think we're gonna regret this!"

(Yusei/Jason): "I activate my trap card!" but it was too late for their reverse cards to take effect as the gales swept away the four D-wheelers off of the ground. The crimson dragon was so powerful that it actually caused the generator to shut down; as well as all the other lights in New Domino City.

* * *

Even at the Security HQ

"Who turned out the lights?" Lazar asked sarcastically as the lights turned back on, "Looks like we switched to the backup generator."

Mina taped on a transparent keyboard, but nothing happened, "We lost all visual, Mr. Goodwin."

'The mighty beast has emerged from its slumber,' Goodwin thought to himself, 'I've seen all I need to see.'

* * *

The crimson dragon was snaking around the stadium. With no place to escape, it quickly flew up out of the Kaibadome. To looks a lot taller than the dome itself. Once the dragon's body stretched upward into a straight line, it spread its wings as far as it could until the dragon slowly disintegrated into tiny bright stars and disappeared.

Back at the stadium, all four duel runners were lying on the track around a giant crater, as they each exhaled exhaust from their hoods. Everyone was lying unconscious on the ground. The first to wake up was Jack Atlas, who was looking around the track holding his right arm. "What… was that?"

The second was Yusei Fudo, who sat on the track's wall holding onto his arm while trying to endure its throbbing pain. "Ahhhgh! It's burns!" When Yusei realized that the arm was still glowing, he took off his glove and there he saw the same mark in the shape on that dragon's tail. "Where did this come from?!"

"So it's not just me."

Yusei looked up and saw that Jack's arm was glowing too. "Jack, what's going on?" He slowly stood up, despite his given bruises, and held his arm as well, "Do you know what this is, Jack?" he noticed that Jacks mark was in the same shape as the strange birthmark he has always been carrying. "You do, don't you?"

* * *

Zixzix: _"First the energy was all over the place. It broke all the counters, then the generator went ballistic on itself and now it seems the particle rotator stopped rotating which means, well, it means it's broken._

Goodwin: "Just do what ever you have to do to get the power back to the city."

Zixzix: _"Okay." _(The monitor clicked off)

Mina: "What about Mr. Atlas?"

Goodwin glanced at Lazar, who knew what he has to do and bowed.

* * *

Isis Kaiba just woke up from her temporary coma and looked around the ruined track. She found Jason Hutchins lying on the ground, squirming in agony while he clutched his glowing arm tightly.

Both Yusei and Jack stare each other down, looking at each other's marks. "Jack, say something, man. What's going on?" the marks suddenly disappeared, especially Jason's, who collapses instantly afterward.

All of a sudden, many flashes of light shone from one direction. _"YOU ARE IN VIOLATION OF CODE 36:B, WHICH STATES THAT NO RESIDENTS OF SATELLITE MAY ENTER NEW __DOMINO__CITY__. BY ORDER OF THE SOCIAL MAINTENANCE DEPARTMENT, WE ARE PLACING YOU BOTH UNDER ARREST! DO NOT TRY TO RUN; WE HAVE YOU SURROUNDED!"_ An entire army of Sector Security officers surrounded the proximity to make sure that no one is leaving. Yusei Fudo has no where to go, and no plan of escape.

'Oh man, I got no escape! But even if Jason and I did manage to get away, I still don't know what that thing on my arm was!'

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) ****Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon**

**Stats:** [Dragon/Fusion] LV12 ATK/4500 DEF/ 3800

** Type:** LIGHT

**Fusion Requirements:** Blue-Eyes White Dragon+ Blue-Eyes White Dragon+ Blue-Eyes White Dragon

**(2) ****Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon**

**Stats:** [Dragon/Effect] LV10 ATK/3000 DEF/ 2500

** Type:** LIGHT

**Description:** This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card cannot be Special summoned except by Tributing 1 "Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon" you control. This card gains 300 ATK for each Dragon-Type monster in your graveyard. You can negate the effects of Spell, Traps, and Effect Monsters that target this card.

**(3) ****Sonic Chick**

**Stats:** [Winged Beast/Effect] LV1 ATK/300 DEF/ 300

** Type:** EARTH

**Description: **This card cannot be destroyed by battle with a monster that has 1900 or more ATK.

**(4) ****Divine White Spirit**

**Stats:** [Fairy/Effect] LV1 ATK/600 DEF/ 500

** Type:** LIGHT

**Description: **By discarding this card from your hand, you can make the battle damage you take this turn 0. You can activate this effect during your of your opponent's turn.

**(5) ****Ghost Gardna**

**Stats:** [Warrior/Effect] LV1 ATK/1000 DEF/ 1900

** Type:** DARK

**Description: **When a face-up monster you control is selected as an attack target, you can change the target to this card. When this card is destroyed and sent to the graveyard, 1 face-up monster your opponent controls loses 1000 ATK, the End Phase.

* * *

**Jack: Let's say we kick this jukebox into overdrive!**

Donna ni hanaretatte togireru koto wa nai sa

(No matter how far we are apart, I'll still go on)

Yori fukaku e kizamareteyuku

(I'm going to engrave it even deeper)

Dakara kizutsuku koto o osorezu ni

(So, don't be afraid of getting hurt and...)

Motto kakenukete yuke

(Go forth, race through even harder)

Shinjiteru mono sono mune ni dakishimete

(and take all of your beliefs into your embrace)

Shinjitsu wa itsu datte

(The truth always comes in ones)

Hitotsu dakara kokoro no koe o kanjite

(so sense the voice inside your heart)

Yuruginai kimochi o kakagete ashita e no kizashi o tsukame

(Hoist your firm sentiments

and seize the signs for tomorrow)

* * *

**Jason: Now let's look what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5Ds:**

**???? : Entering the limits of ****New****Domino****City**** without permits?! Hmmm... well, now, we can't have that, can we?**

**Lazar: We must find out why these two beasts were able to awaken the Crimson Dragon.**

**Isis****: I can't believe i lost to some filthy Satellite..."**

**Jack: Where's Yusei?! I have to duel him again!**

**Goodwin: Yusei's a Satellite; therefore he's been taken to the facility. And i'm afraid he won't be leaving for quite some time.**

**????: Say hello, Newbie, to my duel stadium! Hope you know how to duel.**

**Next time on Stardust Accelerator: Doing Time**

**Yusei: You said we duel here for respect. I think it's time you learn what that really means.**


	13. Doing Time: Part 1

Disclaimer: don't own yugioh

"Who's next?!"

Ever since last night, Yusei Fudo and Jason Hutchins were kept in holding until this morning, where they meet the judge sitting on his high perch in the dark courtroom. They were tied up so they wouldn't get away. The judge's face was scarcely visible due to the only spotlight shone on their faces.

"Look at them; they're just boys. What's so bad about these kids? (sigh) Let's check out the complaint," the judge picked up a few papers to look over as he read aloud, "Turbo dueling without a license, blah, blah, malicious mischief, blady blah bla—" but the last entry on the complaint caught his attention, "Entering the limits of New Domino City without permits?! Hmm… well, now, we can't have that, can we?"

Then suddenly, two machines of strange lasers lowered from the ceiling, supported from a long rod. "So here's a little 'tracking dye'." But despite what he called it, as each of the lasers blasted onto their faces, they actually carved yellow marks onto then, appearing that the two Satellites were screaming in agony. When the lasers were finished, they retracted back to the ceiling. Yusei's new criminal mark shows a long, semi-straight horizontal line which runs right down his eye, with a small triangle near the corner of his eye; while Jason's mark shown a simple thunderbolt that runs upward from his right eye, with two lines stubbing from the upper part. They were both glad the lasers were gone, but there marks still burn like raw iron.

"Are they supposed to tickle?" Yusei huffed in a hoarse voice.

"They're supposed to make sure that we can keep an eye on you. Now, to discuss punishment…" The guards nearby pushed Jason and Yusei out of their respected chairs. "I believe a few months in The Facility should do it. Not to worry, young men, think of it as a sort of 'summer camp': lots of time to yourselves, arts and crafts, colorful characters…" since their arms were bound behind their backs, the Yusei and Jason couldn't pick themselves up off the floor; so the guards decided to pick them up for them, by their hair, that is. "…after you sentence(clears throat) I mean 'vacation' is over, you're free to go back to The Satellite, as long as you never duel of set foot in New Domino City again!"

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 10: Doing Time**

**Part 1: Fishes out of Water****  


* * *

**

_Jack Atlas was being pushed around the arena by a strong whirlwind. Its gale-force winds are so powerful that it instantly took his ability to breath. The crimson dragon met eye to eye with him. Just as it started to lunge at him…_

"WAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!!" Jack bolts upward from his bed, which he has been sleeping in since last night. Whatever he went through was just a dream. "My arm… why does it hurt so much?" Jack held onto his right arm, which throbbed in stabbing pain, "I can't… remember."

Moments later, he walker down the stairs to his condo living room where he saw… "Mina, what happened to me last night?"

"What do you mean, Mr. Atlas? Are you saying you don't remember? You were at the Kaibadome. You had a four-way duel against KaibaCorp's president Isis Kaiba, as well as two Satellites named Yusei Fudo and Jason Hutchins." Mina was busy dressing a few flowers into a vase, "It was amazing. You had Yusei on the ropes, and then he countered, and you countered, and the power outage saved you from losing."

"Save me from what? That's impossible! I had him right where I want him."

"Uh, o-of course you did!" she snapped herself to Jacks direction and bowed apologetically, "Please don't be angry, Mr. Atlas."

"Right," Jack grumbled as he headed toward to door.

"Wait, where are you going?" Mina called, but Jack just ignored her as he prepared to meet Rex Goodwin, "Mr. Goodwin said you should be resting!"

Speaking of Goodwin, he was currently in his office, along with Vice-Director Lazar, and Director of Engineering Zixzix, You see, when Jack and Yusei's dragons attacked each other, there was a huge burst of the ultimate dueling energy I was talking about," Zixzix lectured in front of a spherical video screen. "I call it 'Ener-D'. Get it? It rhymes with energy, and the 'D' is for 'Dueling', so you get the (clears throat) idea."

"Whatever we call it, Zixzix, this power flux was apparently strong enough to awaken the ancient and mystical powers of The Crimson Dragon," Lazar chuckled.

"THE CRIMSON DRAGON??!!" the erratic engineer practically pounced on Goodwin's deck with fits of madness, "But its power is immeasurable! We have no idea what would happen if its power should be unleashed! Earthquakes! Tornados! Cataclysmic catastrophes! COMPLETE GENERATOR MELTDOWN!!!" Zixzix stopped spinning as soon as the screen went blank.

"We lost the signal right here," Lazar said, "The dragon overloaded the power grid."

"Excellent," Goodwin sat on his desk with both hands balled together in front of him, "so its power created by its summoning is greater than we ever imagined."

Meanwhile, Yusei and Jason were on an armored paddy wagon, along with some other random criminals, on their way to The Facility, until some time later, they made it to the giant jailhouse. "Welcome to The Facility, your home away from home," one of the guards announced as the van stooped at the parking area, "A warm bed, three square meals a day, everything the public miscreant could want!" each of the accused marched one at a time to get their markers scanned, then they were led through the building by another guard.

"Now listen up! The rules are simple: no chewing gum, no fighting, and no dueling! Also, you probably don't want to get too close to the bars; some of these guys 'bite'." He pointed to the many cells in the giant room as some of the prisoners in there reach out through the bars, as if they were trying to bust out. "Now, as long as you stay quiet and follow these rules, you 'should' be safe."

When they reached a smaller hallway, Yusei could catch a glimpse of one of the prisoners behind the many cells there. He had spiky blue hair, devious eyes, and yellow markings that run below his eyes. He wore a black t-shirt with a brown vest over it. The guard stopped with the new prisoners scattered around. He took out a small device attached to a keychain. When he pressed the button, the doors to their cells were unlocked and automatically opened. "Here are your new rooms. I hope the water-stained battleship grey is to your liking," he joked as each two prisoners went into each room. Yusei was paired with an old man named Yanagi. Once he reached the room, he jumped from his wooden sandals and cuddled in a nearby bed.

"Yanagi has been here a few times before, as you can tell," the guard whispered to Yusei, "Personally, I think the food's finally gotten to him." The door then closed behind him.

As the security guard walked through the hallway… "Hey, guard," someone's arm reached out and waved to him.

"What do you want?"

"Thought I'd throw a little 'welcome party' for my new neighbors," the arm said as it gave him a thumbs-up, "Y'know, teach 'em the ropes, make sure they stay in line…"

"Good luck," the guard unlocked the call door, "New guy looks like trouble," the electronic lock beeped and clicked as the door opened, and the person inside chucked.

**Back in Yusei's cell…**

"Ah, it's great to be back," Yanagi looked through the only window, with his feet planted onto the wall below it, "You know, you're a lot nicer than my last roommate."

"What's a guy like you doing here?" Yusei asked.

"Me? I collect cards."

"Everyone does that."

"Not quite," the old man jumped off the wall, "see, mine are illegal magic relics. They're from ancient civilizations."

"That's sounds pretty cool," Yusei said, "wish I could see some."

"Tada!" Yanagi took a few cards from out of his person, "Look here, and here!" and another, after another, after another. "Like I said, I got stuck here so many times I learned to sneak in my entire deck past the guards; and it's a good thing I did."

"Why? We can't duel," Yusei pointed out.

"You got a lot to learn, sonny; dueling is the only way to stay safe, and you'll learn that lesson soon enough," the funny old fart fanned his whole deck for Yusei to see, "but as long as we have _these_ cards, we're set!"

"O-kay…"

* * *

"Wait, the Director's in a meeting," Mina was trying to catch up to Jack as he walked through the hallway through the Social Maintenance building, "he can't be disturbed!," she huffed.

A few feet away from Goodwin's office, Jack saw a person all too familiar to him, "Oh, great… it's Isis!"

KaibaCorp's president and CEO, publicly known as Isis Kaiba, was standing right beside Rex Goodwin's office. She was now dressed in a metallic-silver duster, over a set of black leather clothes: a tight shirt that fits just above her stomach, a pair of fingerless gloves, a short skirt stopping at mid-thigh, and a pair of knee-high boots.

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm sure you and I are here for the same reason, Atlas," she said in a cold voice, "to find out where Goodwin and his little Security Squads were when those Satellites crawled out into this city. Which reminds me: last night, you were rather social with one of them, would you mind explaining how you know a person like that?"

As soon as Jack reached the door, he quickly grabbed a handful of Isis' trench coat and pulled her right to her face so they can see eye-to-eye. Not surprisingly, she wasn't fazed at all.

"What associates with me is my business, do you hear me?" he scowled.

"Please, let her go, Jack," Mina stood in between the two, trying to break them up, "Isis isn't a person worth hurting; trust me, she's an enemy you don't want to make."

Although hesitant, Jack released Isis from his grip, but rather roughly.

"That's real nice, Baby Boy," Isis straightened her duster, "hiding behind your nanny's skirt."

**Meanwhile, back at the meeting…**

"Look at this…" Zixzix grabbed some sort of data scoreboard and pointed at the results. "the energy increased when both dragons were out, _but_ it only went into overdrive when they attacked each other."

"Very interesting," Lazar commented, "we must find out why these two beasts were able to awaken The Crimson Dragon."

That was when Goodwin noticed the door sliding open and entered Jack, along with Isis and Mina, "Jack…"

But before he could turn him away, Jack noticed what they were talking about when he saw the video, "That's my duel!" he pointed towards Lazar and Zixzix, "Did these two peons record what happened last night?!"

"Calm down, Jack," Goodwin got up from his desk and walked towards him, "You broke a dozen laws last night. You're lucky that your little match didn't end up on the news. It's our job to protect you, Jack, so we need to know what happened. So then please help all of us help you; tell us about The Crimson Dragon."

"Sure, like what, Goodwin?" Jack asked sarcastically, "I know, how about this?!" he yanked his right sleeve to reveal his birthmark, "This started to burn!"

Isis was surprised when she saw his mark, 'So it wasn't _half_ my imagination last night,' she thought.

"You should be proud," Goodwin bowed in front of The King. "It's The Crimson Dragon's mark; it's a symbol of power. You are one of the rare few known as a Signer'." Everyone, except for Kaiba of course, follow suit.

"So, what?"

"Your sign indicates that you were destined for great things."

"Yeah? Well I always knew I was destined for greatness!" Jack scolded, "So tell me: why did Yusei and that other guy have one as well?"

"What was that?" Goodwin stood up right, so did everyone else, "Those Satellites had sighs as well?"

"Didn't your cameras pick it up?" Jack joked.

"Jack, signs mean far more than you know. You had to make sure that Yusei and the other person had one."

"So what if Yusei had one?! He's not destined for anything but minimum wage! Plus, he didn't have one in the Satellite so it must be a Fak—" but before Jack could finish his sentence, he realized that he missed something on the monitor, "What was that on the video?! Play it back for me!"

The monitor picture whirred backwards by Zixix, but it wasn't enough for Jack, "Before this! There! C'mon, c'mon!" after a few difficult turns the screen shown an image of Yusei and Jason revealing their respective reverse cards. "I want that image enlarged!"

"Uh, of course!"

The image grew bigger and bigger until they were able to see Yusei's card… "Gah, that card…" which is a trap card that almost sent Jacks heart through his throat, "That's… that's Meteor Stream!"

"You are correct as usual," Lazar walked forward, "And you should be pleased that the power went out, otherwise, your unbeaten streak would've come to an end. If you don't believe me, see for yourself," everyone glanced at the spherical monitor.

_Jack: "I activate a speed spell: End of Storm!"_

"Don't be depressed, Jack. It looks like you friend Yusei learns new tricks. You probably thought your combo would give you back Stardust, but you opened the door for a counterattack. It's an easy mistake."

"A mistake?!" The King growled, "You had better watch what you say in front of me, you miserable, purple-haired little freak!"

"I only speak the truth," Lazar stated, unfazed by Jack's death-threat.

"I knew what I was doing all along! How many times must I say: Yusei's just a loser!! I'm the champ! And I'm the one that's gone undefeated in New Domino City!"

"Then why doesn't our dear champion knows what happens, when Yusei's Meteor Stream counters you intended move: You, lose the match."

"But I still had 900 LP after my combo. And his Meteor Stream was only gonna take away…" When Jack thought about the Meteor Stream trap card, he also remembered its effect inflicts direct damage to its player's opponent. And with the LP he had, they would instantly drop to… 0.

"There was… nothing I can do. I actually lost to him!" Jack Atlas took in the delusion of his supposed defeat as he slightly crouched down and hardened his fists until his knuckles went white as the overcoat he was wearing, "Impossible!!"

Goodwin gently laid his gloved hand on top of The King's gloved fist, "Jack, last night never happened, no one outside this room knows this video exists."

But Jack threw the Director's hand away, "But _I_ know, Goodwin," he yelled, "I know what happened last night, and I'm gonna settle some unfinished business!!! Where is Yusei?! I have to duel him again?!"

"I'm afraid that's a little tricky right now," Goodwin walked halfway across the office, "Yusei's a Satellite; therefore he has been taken to The Facility, and I'm afraid he won't be leaving for quite sometime. But don't worry, Jack, we hear that's he's being made to feel right at home."

"…I'm going," and with that, Jack started to walk out the door.

"The Facility?!" Goodwin started as he lightly stomped the floor with one foot, "If this is your idea of a joke, I'm not laughing, Jack. Don't throw away all that we've worked for just to prove that you're the best against _him_. You sign, Jack; it is your destiny." Jack stopped and glared at the Director, but knowing well not to anger him.

But unbeknownst to everyone in the office, Isis Kaiba has already left, but not because she was bored, the moment she saw the two reverse cards on the video, the one that the Jason Hutchins character had played, she didn't want to be around for people in there to judge her.

As she walked across the hallway, her bang have well hidden the devastated glare in her eyes, "That card he used last night… that was…" that card was the trap card Ceasefire, a card that deals damage to the player's opponent for every monster on the field. And with the 1000 LP she had… "I can't believe I lost to some filthy Satellite," she growled to herself, "What's with that place having strong duelists all of a sudden, let alone _turbo _duelists?!" she stopped and placed a hand lightly on the surface of a nearby window. How will the public react when they find out about this? What if the people at work will know about this?" and with a rock solid fist…

"WHY DID I HAVE TO LOSE TO TRASH LIKE HIM?!?!" she swung fast and hard on the glass surface, forcing the window to instantly shatter in to tiny pieces. She watched through the window as the pieces of glass fell towards the ground from the story she was standing on. Fortunately, no one on the ground was around to get injured by the would-be deadly crystal hailstorm.

"There's one bright side about it, though: at least Atlas is just as devastated as I am." Isis walked away, "and this Jason Hutchins is getting his salad tossed as we speak."

**Meanwhile, at The Facility…**

No prison is complete without a certain workout area for the prisoners to… well, you know, work out. And The Facility is no different, that's why Jason and Yusei, along with his cellmate Yanagi, were practically dragged into the prison's large gym room, by a posse led by a well-built man, the one with spiky blue hair, "Say hello, newbie, to my duel stadium! Hope you know how to duel."

The man walked towards the trio, "Now, let me tell you how things are gonna work around here: first day in, everyone duels. You duel good, you get respect. But, don't get no ideas, 'cause I'm the best."

When Yanagi realized who that person was, a bright glint shown in his eyes, "Of course you're the best! You're Bolt Tanner! He's a pro; and I'm your biggest fan! Can I have an autograph, please?" he begged.

"Sure, but I only write in black and blue!!"

"Oh man, the old guy had that coming," a random prisoner whispered, "Tanner sure hates it when anybody brings up his past."

"Congrats! You got your first opponent, and it's yours truly! And I'm gonna mop the floor with that big head of yours!" Tanner elicited, "And because you got no deck, looks like you're dueling with a reject one we put together!"

Yanagi giggled, "Actually, I smuggled my own deck, Tanner. And it's the greatest deck ever made!"

"Yeah, freakin' right!"

"I call it my treasure deck. And it's packed with relics, fossils, antiques…" The old man pulled out cards from his inside kimono pocket, "See?" even his socks had pockets, "See?" even his underpants' pockets had pockets, "See, see? It's all here!"

"A treasure deck?! How'd he get that?!"

"Either way, they won't help you, Grandpa," Tanner set his sights on Yusei and Jason, who he had his back to, "Where're your decks?"

"There, not with us," Yusei lowered his head.

"After I'm through with gramps over here, I'll rustle up some cards for you, and then I'll teach you a thing or two about dueling in The Facility," Tanner went up in their faces with a goetic grin, "And you'd better believe it'll be a lesson you'll never forget."

Luckily, Yanagi managed to get between them to break up this 'uncomfortable' moment, "OK, everyone, calm down. I've been here before and I knows how the rules are supposed to work," and he twiddled his indexes, "If I win, well, I'm in charge."

"LIKE THAT WILL EVER HAPPEN!!!" Tanner shouted like belligerent bull about to charge through a brick wall.

"Well, since you're so confident, let's get this duel started so I can end it!" Yanagi adorned himself a duel disk and cheered, "Woohoo!!! This is like a dream come true, Tanner! I'm actually dueling my hero!"

"Just go!"

"Be careful, Tanner; after all, if that old man's deck is real, then you just might have a fight on your hands."

"Like that treasure deck is real," Tanner retorted, "Don't make me laugh!"

"Oh, they're real, I promise. And they're gonna put me in charge of this place!"

"Grandpa, age before beauty!"

**Yanagi: 4000**

**Tanner: 4000**

Yanagi tittered, "I get it; I'm first."

Both players activated their duel disks.

"Watch this," Yanagi drew his sixth card, "Oh, a priceless artifact! I got this one during my last amazing adventure! I'm preferring to the ancient tribe of Aztec warriors, who led me to their secret forbidden temple, where I found…"

"Save the stories for bedtime, Grandpa, and make your move," Tanner interrupted.

"Where I found this…" Yanagi gave his card a big smooch, "The ancient relic know as the (1)Crystal Skull (0/0)!" a radiant column of light shot from the monster card zone. Everyone stood in amazement as a monster rose from the ground as just the name suggested: a giant blue crystal skull. "So who's laughing now, Tanner?" but the bewilderment was short lived as the crystal cranium fired an electric bolt at its master, taking 1000 of his life points.

**Yanagi: 3000**

**Tanner: 4000**

"You didn't read the fine print, Gramps!" one of prisoners derided.

"Looks like his treasure's got its own curse! He lost life points just for summoning it!"

"But, of course!" Yanagi pointed out, "The curse proves that it's no fake!" The Aztecs promised me it was real!"

But the felons just laughed up, "And what else did they promise you? Montezuma's revenge?"

"Hey, Grandpa! I got an ancient artifact for ya', it's your wardrobe; if there's one thing the Aztecs didn't give you, it was a mirror!"

Tanner was especially laughing harder then when he was at a comedy stand, "Oh, yeah! Not to mention deodorant."

"You think you're funny?! Just you wait! The ancient and mystic powers of the Crystal Skull will stop you laughing in your tracks!"

"OK, Gramps, story time's over, so now it's my turn!" Tanner drew his sixth card, "And I'm starting out with this: my spell card Cost Down! By discarding one card from my hand, all the monsters there have their levels downgraded by 2 for the rest of the turn."

"And why'd you do that?" Yanagi queried.

"'Cause you're a funny guy, Grandpa, and I want the chance to embarrass you even more. And this guy will keep the misery coming! I summon (2)Ushi Oni (2150/1950)! And he's worse that anyone you might run into here!" after sliding a card into his graveyard slot, Tanner sent to the field a small jar, which conjured up a giant bull demon with four tentacles on its back. Yanagi was terror-stricken.

"You look scared, Grandpa," Tanner chuckled, "And you should be, because my Ushi Oni is about to turn your Crystal Skull into an Aztec ruin! Ushi Oni, take out that relic!" The giant bull charged at the crystal.

"You can't! The Crystal Skull is a priceless artifact!" but it was too late for the senior to protest as Ushi Oni shattered the skull to pieces. The prisoners cheered, but Yanagi was mortified, "Don't you know what you've just done?!"

"I just destroyed a priceless artifact, Gramps, now it really is ancient history!" Tanner reviled, "Your turn."

"Well, let's see what other treasures I have for you! Watch this!" Yanagi drew, and guffawed by what he got, "This was a rare fine indeed! During my adventures in India, I discovered the (3)Asoka Pillar (0/2000), in the lost capital of the ancient Moria Empire!" the instant he played the card, a giant column of energy erected from the ground which made a giant pole, with a group of lions sitting back-to-back on the top.

"Looks like a giant lamp post to me."

"Yeah, that don't seem so special!"

"Well, it is," Yanagi said, "See, the Asoka Pillar is a source of great strength to the Valeria culture. It's over a millennia old and no one quite knows how it was created; I had my suspicions…"

"Hey, Grandpa! Give that college lecture a break!" Tanner interrupted, "They tried to teach me that stuff back at the reeducation center… and I flunked it a dozen times!"

"I'd be happy to tutor you in all the relevant texts," Yanagi slips a card into his Spell/Trap slot, "For instance, this Spirit Mask card is a treasured artifact from an African tribe," a antique-looking mask rose up ad equipped to one of the lions on the Asoka Pillar.

"Ha! All that's good for is Halloween!"

"But it's got vast supernatural powers. Just wait till next turn!"

"Don't think so!" Tanner started his and drew, "I've had enough of 'Aztec' this, 'Asoka' that, and 'African' whatever! So I think I'll end this little lecture of yours and start up one of my own! See, I rule this place, and it's time you losers learn a lesson in Respect! Now let's get this class started," he took Ushi Oni off the field and replaced it with another monster, "I summon, (4)Giant Ushi Oni (2600/2100)!" the second monster was more terrifying. It was like Ushi Oni, except it has more bulk, blue hide, and instead of a jar, it mounts on a large thorax with eight hairy spider legs.

"Hey, Grandpa! You might wanna close your eyes, unless you wanna see your pillar get pulverized!" that signaled the spider-bull to charge at the pillar, smashing it to pieces. The falling rubble shattered into pixels just before they crush Yanagi.

"Hmph, so much for that."

"But wait guys. Gramps wasn't lying about that pillar's strength. Because as soon as it gets destroyed, it delivers 2000 points of damage to its owner!" a huge bolt of lightning struck the old man, taking massive damage.

**Yanagi: 1000**

**Tanner: 4000**

"And let's not forget you supernatural Spirit Mask; it went right to the graveyard. That means you take one card from your hand, and throw it in afterwards to keep it company."

"Huh?! Oh …yeah," Yanagi dolefully placed a card into his graveyard slot.

"Tanner's right, he should've saved that mask for some masquerade ball."

"If you wanna see some real magic, check out Giant Ushi Oni's special ability: if he destroys a monster in battle, he can attack you all over again!" Tanners bull let out a deafening roar as it awaits its masters command. "Now, Giant Ushi Oni, attack!"

The spider-bull leapt to the sky as it pounces towards Yanagi, who braces himself in fright. When the attack collided, it sent the old man's cards spilled across the floor, and him being knocked down along with them. Seeing enough, Jason and Yusei ran to help him up.

"Are you okay?" Yusei asked, but it seems he was far from it, as Yanagi quickly crawled towards his cards to pick them up.

**Yanagi: 0**

**Tanner: 4000**

"Class dismissed," Tanner smirked as he walked towards Yanagi, "You may have been here before, Grandpa, but you've never dueled with the likes of me. And since you lost, that means I'm still in charge of this place," he stomped his timberland onto Yanagi's Crystal Skull card. "Now get out of here. And leave your precious treasures with me!" Tanner showed another sinister smirk.

"Please let me keep my deck! I'm just an old man, Mister Tanner!" Yanagi whined as he tried to release his card from tanner's weight, "I spent my entire life collecting all these rare cards. These cards are all I have left. You understand; they're like my children. The cards are so special and delicate that they require proper supervision! I've climbed Mt. Everest, I've survived the Sahara heat, I've touched the North and South Poles, and in all these amazing travels, there's nothing more precious as the cards. Just open your heart and let me keep them safe and sound." But Tanner was unfazed by his sob story as he bruised the card with the sole of his shoe, "Gah! You can't do this!"

Yusei had enough; now was the time for action. So the moment he set a gloved hand on Tanner's shoulder, he kicked his boot below Tanners feet, literally sweeping him off them, and crashing to the hard cold floor. His head was still banging even when he picked himself up, "Look's like you just earned yourself a duel."

"Can I borrow your cards?" Yusei asked. Yanagi has no idea what he was about to do. "I can see the true value of your treasure deck."

"Wha?"

"So you think this deck is worthless?" Yusei took the old man's duel disk and placed it on himself, "…then prove it, Tanner."

"Duel you? With that deck?" Tanner wasn't amused; in fact, he was insulted, "Please, I want a challenge."

"And you'll get one. You said we duel here for respect. I think it's time you learn what that really means."

Everyone made room on the gymnasium floor, for Yusei Fudo and Bolt Tanner to rare to duel. Both are going to teach the other what the word 'respect' really means.

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1)Crystal Skull**

**Stats: [Rock/Effect] LV1 ATK/0 DEF/0****  
****Type: Water**

**Effect: When this card is summoned, take 1000 damage.**

**(2)Ushi Oni**

**Stats: [Fiend/Effect] LV6 ATK/2150 DEF/1950****  
****Type: Dark**

**(3)Asoka Pillar**

**Stats: [Rock/Effect] LV3 ATK/0 DEF/2200****  
****Type: Earth**

**Effect: When this card is destroyed, take 2000 damage.**

**(4)Giant Ushi Oni**

**Stats: [Fiend/Effect] LV8 ATK/2600 DEF/2100****  
****Type: Dark**

**Effect: This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card cannot be Special Summoned except by Tributing 1 "Ushi Oni". If this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle, it can attack once again in a row.

* * *

**

**Jack: Let's say we kick this Jukebox into overdrive!**

**Last Train:**

Tooku kanata wo miwata shite  
tanjun ni shikai no semai koto ki tsuita

jibun suteru hou ga raku demo  
saidaigen taete mitai to omotta

kyou ga donna dame na hi demo  
wazu ka na hikari wo  
asu wa mata asu no jibun de  
tomoseba ii

togirenai you ni  
kienai you ni  
jibun wo tashikamete  
kazoe kirenai hodo kizutsuite mo  
tashikana ashita ga kuru you ni to negatte hashiru  
nido tonai kyou wo

nani ka no sei ni shi nagara  
souyatte susumenai jibun aimai ni shite  
koko shika nai shunkan datte  
mou zutto muda ni shiteki dakedo

warai sugoshi taitsu kamo  
naiteta kinou mo  
kuru asa wa itsumo onaji de  
tada hitotsu datta

tomaranai you ni  
taenai you ni  
jibun ni toikakete  
asu wo ushinatte mo jibun no sei darou  
nido wa nai kyou wo dou ikiru no mo jiyuu dakara  
sonna koukai nai jinsei wo

It's time to say goodbye  
I'm not afraid of you  
I need to walk away  
'Cause I don't want to be a liar  
If I cannot live my life  
I am as good as dead

togirenai you ni  
kienai you ni  
jibun wo tashikamete  
kazoe kirenai hodo kizutsuite mo  
tashikana ashita ga kuru you ni to negatte hashiru  
nido tonai kyou wo

tomaranai you ni  
taenai you ni  
jibun ni toikakete  
asu wo ushinatte mo jibun no sei darou  
nido wa nai kyou wo dou ikiru no mo jiyuu dakara  
sonna koukai nai jinsei wo  
sonna koukai nai jinsei wo

togirenai you ni  
kienai you ni

* * *

**Jason: Now let's look what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5Ds:**

**Tanner: You lose a duel in here, Rookie, and no one's gonna respect you.**

**Yusei: Then you better hope you don't lose.**

**Jack: Hey! That dragon symbol looks like...**

**Goodwin: The mark on his arm represent the wings of the Crimson Dragon.**

**Tanner: So, you got a name, Newbie?**

**Yusei: ...It's Yusei.**

**Next time on Stardust Accelerator: Doing Time-Part 2**

**Jack: So i'm supposed to save the world... why didn't you just say so?**


	14. Doing Time: Part 2

Same disclaimer applied

"Talking"

'Thinking'

_Flashback_

_Distant Communication_

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

**Yusei: Now let's get up to speed with YuGiOh 5Ds:**

"Can I borrow your cards?" Yusei asked. Yanagi has no idea what he was about to do. "I can see the true value of your treasure deck."

"Wha?"

"So you think this deck is worthless?" Yusei took the old man's duel disk and placed it on himself, "…then prove it, Tanner."

"Duel you? With that deck?" Tanner wasn't amused; in fact, he was insulted, "Please, I want a challenge."

"And you'll get one. You said we duel here for respect. I think it's time you learn what that really means."

Everyone made room on the gymnasium floor, for Yusei Fudo and Bolt Tanner to rare to duel. Both are going to teach the other what the word 'respect' really means.

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 11: Doing Time**

**Part 2: R-E-S-P-E-C-T

* * *

**

Were we last left our heroes, a card-styled prison brawl was about to be initiated. Yusei stands across from Tanner ready to duel him. "There's no way you got the skills to take me down! Do you have any idea what you're getting yourself into, kid?"

"Bring it on and find out."

"Hmph, at least you got the whole attitude thing covered."

"You don't have to do this, you know," Yanagi insisted Yusei.

"But if I don't step up, I'll never live it down."

It appears there's nothing stopping Yusei from confronting Bolt Tanner, the former Pro Duelist. Especially when Yanagi senses an unusual aura coming from him. 'There's something special about this whippersnapper. If I really saw what I think I saw the other night, is it possible that this kid is who I think it is?' "…Who are you?"

"Just a guy trying to get by."

Tanner had enough of giving intermission, so he wasted no time and activated his duel disk yet again, "You lose a duel in here, rookie, and no one's gonna respect you. And trust me, arount here, you survive on respect."

"Well, then you better hope you don't lose."

Yusei/Tanner: "Let's do this!"

**Yusei: 4000**

**Tanner: 4000**

"Seniority rules here. I'm going first," Tanner drew his sixth card and grinned, "Let me introduce you to my little pet, (1)Jirai Gumo (2200/100)!" The monster he summoned is a giant brown spider. Despite having eight legs, it stood on two. Then he set two reverse cards, ending his turn. "So how's the Old Timer's deck looking? You gonna throw some garage-sale rejects at me?"

Even Yanagi knew Yusei has no chance. He used the cards himself and look where it got him.

"Hey, Yanagi," Jason pats his hand on the old man's sholder, "Don't listen to anything those guys have to say. They don't know what they're talking about."

"But you say me duel. Everything blew up in my face. I had my old butt handed to me."

"Well, let's see what those ancient relics can do in the right hands."

But the duel was not without supervision. For in a giant office in a different part of The Facility, there slumped a lard-fat afro with a warden suit held tight around his giant body. He also had a giant beard that stands him out, and a small prison cap topped over his bald head. He was watching everything on a security camera.

The Negro stood upright on his chair and picked up the phone. He was going to call Rex Goodwin.

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

Walking to his mansion, in the highest skyscraper in New Domino City, enters Director Goodwin, along with Jack Atlas and, for some unknown reason, Isis Kaiba. Goodwin was told what's happening from The Facility via phone line. "Yes, understood; be sure you keep an eye on that duel, Mr. Armstrong. Write up a report. Be sure to note if anything unusual happens," after that, he hangs up. "It sounds like your old buddy from The Satellite is making some new duelist friends from The Facility."

"Hmph," Jack growled. He still couldn't escape what happened at the office this morning. Isis, on the other hand, was actually enjoying his little twinge. She needed at least something to forget what happened at the Kaibadome last night.

As the three of them entered the mansion, and through a luxurious, decorated room, Goodwin tried to succor him, "Look, Jack, I'm sorry how recent events have transpired, but allow me to explain; so far our relationship is operated on a need-to-know basis, meaning that I know things that you don't, because you haven't needed to know these things; until now."

When they entered inside an elevator, Goodwin took off his glove to scan his fingerprint on a large panel, as well as to scan his eye. When that was done, the elevator descended. After passing floor after floor for what seemed to be an eternity, they stopped on what seems to be a basement floor. But it wasn't what neither Jack nor Isis expected. The walls, floor and ceiling were all made of rough stone, with strange tablets carved into it. The only sources of light were the person-height pillars of stone that lined themselves on either side of the room, topped with torches.

"You're a lot more important than you know, Jack. But what makes you important is not because you're a great duelist, rather you're a great duelist because of what makes you important."

"I'm gonna pretend that made sense."

"Something you do very often," Isis scoffed.

"Beyond this door lies you destiny, Jack," the giant stone door slid open as they entered into the room. As soon as they were all inside the door slid back. "What I'm about to show the two of you is one of the world's best-kept secrets," what Goodwin was talking about was right in front of then: a large structure of stone surrounded by several small structures, as well as an oddly-shaped circle of light. "Amazing, isn't it?"

It wasn't long until Jack noticed a strange arced dragon symbol carved on what seemed to be the smaller structure's main entrance. He also noticed that one of the parts on the symbol were similar to the mark on his arm, and rolled up his sleeve to make sure that he was right.

"Now, listen closely," Goodwin continued, "You're standing in front of the Stairway of the Crimson Dragon. It was originally erected in Peru, but my predecessors relocated it here."

"That's all well and good, but how does that relate to this mark?"

"The mark on your arm represents the wings of the Crimson Dragon; the same dragon you, Yusei and that stranger somehow summoned at the end of your duel. Like I said, Jack, you're much more important than you know."

"It had to be a coincidence," Isis contended, "I mean, do you really expect Jack to believe that he was born with a pair of dragon wings on his arm?"

"Believe it or not, just by giving Jack his Mark of the Dragon, the Crimson Dragon chose him to be part of much greater that anyone can register."

* * *

**Meanwhile, back at The Facility…**

"It's my move, Tanner," Yusei drew his sixth card, which revealed to be a spell card. 'This won't help me now,' he thought as he added the card to his hand. Yanagi recognized Yusei's hand as the same one he had, so that might mean that he could need some help.

"Whatever you do, don't use the Crystal skull."

"The Crystal Skull! Good idea!" Yusei reached for the Crystal Skull card.

"What are you—I said _don't _use it! Didn't you see what it did to me?!"

"I summon Crystal Skull in defense mode!" the giant blue skull appeared on the field. And just like last time, it unleashed a cursed torrent of energy directly at Yusei. The spectators (besides Yanagi and Jason, at least) all took the opportunity to burst at his move.

"Don't say I didn't warn you," Yanagi cited.

"You know that skull's cursed," Tanner protested, "Why play something that attacks yourself?!"

"Good question, why would I?" Yusei asked rhetorically, while still surrounded by the flowing torrent of energy, "It'd be a stupid move, unless of course, I have _this_!" a spell card appeared beside Yusei, which summoned a white paper doll over his head.

Yanagi remembered that one, "I got it from a friendly shaman in Africa, but he never got the chance to explain how it worked.

Absorbing the energy, the white doll turned pitch-black and dispelled the attack, and then it instantly broke into smaller dolls as they assaulted Tanner, taking 1000 of his life points. The spectators were flabbergasted.

**Yusei: 4000**

**Tanner: 3000**

"What just happened?"

"Seems like everything played all opposite-like! Tanner ended up losing life points, and the newbie didn't take any damage at all!"

"How'd you do that?!" Tanner implored, "What was that card you just played?!"

"It's the Curse Reflection Doll," Yusei answered, "Normally it's used to reflect burn effects back at the opponent, but I'm gonna use it to turn Crystal Skull's curse into an attack against you."

"So Yusei found some crazy, cleaver was to put that curse in reverse!" Jason said with delight.

Even Yanagi was feeling a little better, "I'm just so glad that someone other than me can see the true value of these cards."

"Well, I never met a card I didn't like," Yusei commented, "You see, every card is special, and you just have to appreciate its power in order to figure out how to best use it."

"…so you don't think they're worthless?"

Yusei nodded, "No way, this deck is incredible."

Yanagi suddenly felt teary-eyed, "…I knew it …I just knew it?"

"Hey, don't sweat it, Tanner," one of the prisoners called, "the new kid just got lucky, is all; don't let it get to ya'!"

"No, that was not luck," Tanner answered with a smile, "If the Pro-Duels taught me one thing, it was how to spot a good opponent," The prisoners didn't believe what they just heard. Was Bolt Tanner actually being nice for once? That was the question that ran through everyone's mind.

"It's my turn; I draw!" Tanner looked at the card he drew, "Sweet! I release Jirai Gumo, in order to advance-summon Ushi Oni (2150/1950)!" The humanoid spider's flesh became a small ceramic jar, which released the giant bull-demon.

"Now, why would he do that?" Yanagi wondered, "Jirai Gumo is more powerful than this monster."

"Just wait, Old-Timer, The real show's about to begin. Now I release Ushi Oni to special-summon, Giant Ushi Oni!" Tanner replaced the demon with another, summoning the giant spider-bull demon, "This spider-bull does whatever a spider can! And now my Giant Ushi Oni is taking out your Crystal Skull! Go, Spector Spike!" Tanner's monster charged after the crystal, shattering it to pieces, then pixels.

"That's just the beginning of your worries, because when Giant Ushi Oni destroys a monster in battle, it can attack again. And with your Crystal Skull gone, you got no defense; so you're open for a direct attack!" Ushi Oni spewed several thick strands of webbing, which tangled over Yusei as he took the damage without even flinching.

**Yusei: 1400**

**Tanner: 3000**

"That was awesome!"

"This guy just ain't got what it takes!"

"So are you any good at all, kid?" Tanner asked, "Or are you the loser these guys say you are?!"

* * *

**Meanwhile, at Goodwin's mansion…**

"Now, allow me to shed some light on you," Goodwin explained, "I am a 360th Guardian of the Star. Throughout history, my order has been known by many names: The Defenders of Peace, The Servants to the Stars, we have sworn to maintain balance in the universe by taking…" he turned from the stone stairway to Jack and Isis, "…The Oath of Yliaster."

"The what, now?"

"It is the power that gives everything in nature its inner essence and outward form. The universe, energy, mankind, Yliaster is the power flowing through all of these things, binding them together."

"So it's glue," Isis joked, "you've sworn allegiance to magic glue!"

"Joke all you want, Isis, but that mark on Jack's arm, it means that he is part of something much greater. And if Yusei and Mr. Hutchins really do have a mark, then they're part of it too."

* * *

**Back at The Facility…**

"From my hand, I summon Asoka Pillar (0/2200) in defense mode!" Yusei started his turn by playing the giant Morian pillar.

"Ooh, look at me, I just summoned a giant stick!"

"Now you really got us scared!"

"Knock it off, you two!" Tanner argued, "I'm interested to see how much he can squeeze out of that deck," he turned to Yusei. "you got another surprise up your sleeve?"

"I'm all about surprises, like this next card, Stonehenge!" Yusei plated a spell card that revealed the famouse circle of stone structures. "See, the power of Stonehenge lets me summon a monster with no ATK points from my graveyard. So I'm summoning Crystal Skull on defense position!" in a flash of light, the crystal came back to the field, but not without inflicting its curse on Yusei.

**Yusei: 400**

**Tanner: 3000**

"Is you skull as empty as that Crystal Skull?!" the prisoners laughed, "'cause unless you got another one of these reflection dolls, that was the stupidest move possible!"

"Think again, boys," Tanner analyzed, "Giant Ushi Oni can attack twice. If he hadn't summoned that skull, I would've been able to take him out after demolishing that pillar. But with that Crystal Skull in the way…"

"Ushi Oni will have to attack it instead of him!"

"So, uh, he basically saved himself from a big beating by taking a little/medium-sized beating?"

"Yep," Tanner smiled deviously, "except he made one major mistake: when Ushi Oni demolishes that pillar, he'll take 2000 points of damage!"

"Sorry, kiddo," Yanagi droned, "I wish I could've given you a better deck."

"Don't give up on you deck now, Gramps," Jason said.

"Well said," Yusei placed a card face-down, ending his turn.

'A trap card! Now, if only I can get him to use it…' "Don't think that face-down can save you, kid!" Tanner braved.

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

Goodwin, Jack and Isis started to walk through the stone tower. Jack noticed that the walls are carved in weird pictures, "What are these little drawings?" he asked Goodwin.

"They're carvings, Jack, carvings that nary ancient myths and legends: how the universe began, the dawn of time, the birth of civilization, the great war of the demons." Goodwin raised his right hand, "Come, let me take you on a journey through time." The entire room changed form, as they all were soaring above the clouds; they were confronted by a small island floating on the clouds, which approached then at top speed. Then suddenly, the sky changed to night (which had a faint red tint from a glowing red star above them) and they were once again standing on solid ground, watching many people kneel in front of the tower.

"Long ago, in the Pre-Incan civilization of South America, the People of the Stars built a giant building of stone known as the Stairway of the Crimson Dragon."

"Okay…"

"The Stairway was built in honor of the Dragon Star which was said to govern all creation. All the wisdom of the star was handed down to their ruler, the Star Dragon King. Led by the star and their king, the People of the Stars built an incredible civilization. But then the gate to the Shadow Realm was opened. Legends tell of evil demons and spirits led by The Demon Lord, engaging in a great war. The king climbed the stairway and begged the Dragon Star to help its people. And the dragon star answered the king's cry. The great Crimson Dragon swept over the land, sealing the forces of evil deep beneath the earth."

"…like in the dirt?"

"Precisely; behold," Goodwin raised his hand again, only the change the scene to daytime. They're now floating above the ground, watching over strange lines sketched to it."

"Those are the legendary Nazca Lines!" Isis gasped.

"They are the seals of the Crimson Dragon."

* * *

"Alright, newbie, my turn!" Tanner called, "Let's see how your little trinkets can stand up to this move!" Ushi Oni flexed its muscles, ready to attack. "Giant Ushi Oni, tear down that Asoka Pillar!"

"I activate the Totem Pole trap card!" Yusei plated his reverse card, calling out a decorated wooden pole. One of its three heads fired off and took Ushi Oni's attack, exploding on contact. The top head dropped to the third one to fill out the missing space.

"How incredible!" Yanagi cheered.

"Keep 'em coming, Tanner, because my Totem Pole can block your attacks up to 3 times!"

"This is fantastic! With my deck, you're gonna win!" but the celebration was short-lived as Tanner chuckled malignly.

"You think I didn't see that coming? I was counting on it! 'Cause now I can build my Spider Web Castle! And it's all thanks to you activating you trap card!" Tanner activated a reverse card, which invaded the field of many threads of webbing, forming the shape of a tall Japanese tower, "So now, if your monster attacks, it'll get caught in my web and will only be able to use half its ATK points. But the best part is that I can also descend a card to my graveyard, and then jump past your defense for a direct attack!"

"I take it back, kid. You're not gonna win." The old man whined.

Then Tanner sets a card face down and ended his turn, 'Bring it on, kid, 'cause my field is perfect. Thanks to Trap Hole, when you summon a monster with 1000 or more ATK points, it'll get destroyed. And if you summon some weaker ones, hoping for a straight-up brawl, I can use mirror force to wipe 'em out before they even move. This duel's got me all fired up. I love it! It reminds me of better days; back when I was on my way to the top of the Speed World Circuit. The energy in the air, heart pounding, blood racing, it was the greatest feeling in the world! Until, I took my shot at the Championship, and Jack Atlas took me out in one move. It was the most humiliating defeat of my career.'

Flashback_**…**_

_After the match, Jack confronted the devastated Bolt Tanner at his trailer. He took of his helmet to reveal a smug smile on his face._

_Jack: "Guess you'll have to wait a little longer to take your victory lap, huh, Tanner? Maybe next time I'll actually try!"_

_After those very words, he walked away._

…_**End flashback.**_

'It was all downhill from there.' Tanner snapped himself out of thought and took a glance at his opponent, 'But I like this kid. He reminds me… well, of me!'

"It's my move, Tanner!" Yusei started his turn and looked down at Yanagi's deck, 'I know this deck won't let me down. If I can get one more monster on the field, I can win this. If not, I'm a goner.' Yusei closed his eyes, reached for his deck and focused all energies to one last draw. When the Draw Phase passed, he opened his eyes, looked at the card, and smiled.

"I activate the Piri Res Map spell card!" Yusei played a card which showed a decayed treasure map. The prisoners queried.

"What can you do with some old piece of paper—"

"It's not paper, it's gazelle skin!" Yanagi protested, "That say that the—"

"THERE HE GOES AGAIN!!!"

"ENOUGH WITH THE LECTURES, PROFESSOR!!!"

"The Piri Res Map can show a monster with no ATK points, a clear path from my deck to my hand," Yusei's duel disk slid a card from the middle of the deck as he took it.

"So does that mean you draw another card?" Tanner asked.

"I'm not just drawing the card, I'm summoning it: (2)Cabrera Stone (0/0)!" Yusei summoned a giant onyx stone with strange runes on it. But be cause of Piri Res Map's effect he had to pay half of his life points.

**Yusei: 200**

**Tanner: 3000**

"What's that rock gonna do?" the prisoners mocked.

"It's a stone!" Yanagi corrected, "The Cabrera Stone, to be exact. They say a lost civilization—"

"NOBODY CARES, OLD MAN!!!"

But Yanagi just continued, "This is an archeological spectacle! The Crystal Skull, The Cabrera Stone, the Asoka Pillar, I'm getting historical goose bumps! The world's best museums don't hold collections as rare as these!"

"Something I don't get: the downside of that map is that you have to pay half your life points in order to summon that rock you added to your hand. That leaves you with only 200 life points. Why would you put yourself at risk like that, to summon something with no attack points?"

"To win this duel," Yusei gave Tanner a daring eye gaze, "Sorry, Tanner, but now that I gathered Crystal Skull, Asoka Pillar and Cabrera Stone on my field together, I can activate another card," he played as spell card, which he had ever since the duel started. "I activate the spell card: Triangle-O!" a small glowing circle appeared on the floor, which divided into three circles, forming into a triangle, hence the name. The triangle got bigger and bigger until it surrounded the entire field. Every monster inside it began to crack and crumple.

'What kind of hocus-pocus is this?!"

"Amazing! I can't wait to see what this can really do!"

"Triangle-O's power destroys every card on the field!" Yusei's artifacts started to break into pieces, as well as Tanner's Giant Ushi Oni, "And all the damage I would've taken by the cards' effects gets dealt to you! RESPECT THAT, TANNER!!!"

The ancient treasures collapsed and the giant shards of what was left of them hurled straight towards tanner, taking 3000 life points total and earning Yusei the duel.

**Yusei: 400**

**Tanner: 0**

It all happened so fast. In just two shots, he was defeated by a little fish. "I… I don't believe it," he fell to the floor on one knee.

Yanagi and Jason went to where Yusei stands to celebrate on his victory. "Dear boy, dear boy, that was stupendous!" Yanagi cheered, "I traveled the world over, but I've never seen dueling like tat! You didn't even attack! I could hug you, but don't worry, I won't"

Yusei looked behind him and nodded, "I couldn't have done it with out this awesome deck of yours!"

"Actually, I will hug ya'!"

Now the old man felt teary-eyed; Yanagi clung to Yusei for the best bear hug he can offer, as well as a few additional smooches, which Yusei finds a little annoying, "Uh, Jason, is there some way to let this guy off gently?" he asked.

Their celebration was about to be short-lived, because the rest of the spectators, didn't take Tanner's loss lightly on them.

"Don't worry, we don't care that he won, he's still slime to us!"

"Yeah, we're taking that treasure deck!"

"Hang on!" Tanner held them back.

"Hang on for what?"

The former pro walked toward Yusei and his friends, "You won the duel without ever attacking once. That's a pretty amazing thing to pull off. And I know what I'm talking about, kid. The old man was right."

"He's right about what?" Jason asked.

"I used to be a pro, but I never dueled someone quite like you." Tanner turned to Yusei, "You're good. So, you got a name, newbie?"

"…It's Yusei."

And Tanner turned his attention to Yanagi, "Hey, Gramps, I apologize for stepping on your cards."

"I hope you learned your lesson, Tanner," Jason said, "Show 'em, Yanagi!" Yanagi fanned his cards for tanner to see, "Pretty cool, aren't they? You had him doubting their worth, but Yusei showed him how special they are."

"My time in the spotlight is long gone, but I want to do everything I can to get Yusei to the world of the pros." Tanner reached his hand to Yusei, "So what do you say? You interested?"

"…very," Yusei grabbed his hand with his own for a firm handshake. Things were looking to get pretty well in The Facility, until…

"Alright, alright. Break it up, _fellas_!"

Their small moment was short-lived as it was disturbed by a pair of smirk-wearing prison guards, carrying nightsticks, "Let's go, No. 88! The Chief wants to see you. Now!" They preferred to Yusei Fudo. He was about to enter the lion's den.

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

"Many centuries have passed since the Crimson Dragon sealed the Demon Lord and his forces beneath the earth," Goodwin continued as the three float over the Nazca Lines, "But those forces continue to draw energy from mankind; they feed off our sadness, our jealousy, our anger, our greed. Soon, the Demon's forces will have more power than they ever had before. They will break the Dragon's seal, and return to pillage the earth.

"That's bad," Jack simply said.

"On the day the seal breaks, and the Demon Lord resurrects, my order will be prepared to summon the Crimson Dragon and protect humanity. But we must find the Signers, those bearing the Mark of the Dragon, like you, and those Satellites, Yusei and Jason Hutchins."

He wasn't sure whether to believe him or not, but after hearing Goodwin's story, he wondered, 'Was this mark supposed to mean something? Is it really here on my arm for a reason?' Jack look at his dragon wings in reverence, "So I'm supposed to save the world… why didn't you say so?"

After hearing everything from Goodwin, a certain woman decided she had heard enough, "Well that was an interesting movie you displayed, but I would really want to be taken back down to earth," Isis turned and walked away.

"Are you sure you want to leave us without assistance?" Goodwin asked as the room returned to its original setting.

Isis stopped and turned towards Goodwin, with an annoyed stare in her eyes, "Listen, old man, I don't know if you're trying to pull one on Isis Kaiba, or if you're just senile, but in case you don't know, I'm twenty years old. Now I can believe Jack can be hoaxed but some Incan folk legend, but I, for one, am not some spoiled little prince like you so-called 'Master of Faster'. I'll tell you what: if you guys wanna chase some fairy tail, then go ahead, but don't expect me to. All I can offer you is a rope to hang yourself." Isis walked towards the door.

"You must offer much more other than you derisions," Goodwin protested, "The Public Security Maintenance Bureau is only a temporary form of the People of the Stars. KaibaCorp. Is funded by the Bureau and vive-versa. So KaibaCorp. Is part of the People of the Stars, and so are you."

Isis just kept walking, ignoring Goodwin's words.

"I'm sure that you're also aware that we still have the video footage of you duel from last night. If you don't help us, then I will not hesitate to have that video edited, so when the tabloids witness it, you will be the only one at fault. Let's see what that will do to your company then."

Isis stopped right in her tracks. She would never put her company at risk like that. As much as she would hate to admit it, she will have to help whether she like it or not, "Alright…what is it do I have to do?"

'You must arrange a special tournament, in which we will discover the Signer's abilities. We shall call this contest… The Fortune Cup."

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1)Jirai Gumo**

**Stats: [Insect/Effect] LV4 ATK/2200 DEF/100**  
**Type: Earth**

**Effect: When you declare an attack with this card, toss a coin and call it. If you call it right, attack normally. If you call it wrong, lose half of your Life Points before attacking.**

**(2)Cabrera Stone**

**Stats: [Rock/Effect] LV1 ATK/0 DEF/0**

**Effect: If this card is in Defense Position, destroy it. At that time, its controller takes 1000 damage.**

**Type: Earth

* * *

**

**Jack: Let's say we kick this Jukebox into overdrive!**

**Blind Ambition:**

I wanna change the world,  
I wanna find my pearl,  
I wanna be the one who in the end gets the pritty girl,  
Dont wanna be out done,  
I wanna be second to none,  
I wanna be the hero not a zero to everyone,  
But im subtratctin by addition,  
And im a pritty fat magician,  
I haven't figured out my mission,  
Just another boy with blind ambition  
I wanna take the throne,  
And hog the microphone,  
I wanna sing the greatest record you will ever own,  
I wanna cure or ill,  
And have my face on a dollar bill,  
I wanna be the zen master not that fool up on the hill,  
I want ya to sign my petition,  
I'm turning up the road to pedition,  
I wanna be the new rendition,  
Just another boy with blind ambition  
Its a feeling in me,  
It's a feeling in you,  
Everyone is trying to find that place that stakes there clame,  
I wanna take the throne,  
And hog the microphone,  
I wanna sing the greatest record you will ever own,  
I wanna change the world,  
I gotta go find my pearl,  
I wanna be the one who in the end gets the pritty girl,  
But im subtraction by addition,  
I'm a pritty fat magician,  
I'm waiting for the intermission,  
Just another boy with blind ambition,  
I want ya to sign my petition,  
I'm turning up the road to pedition,  
I wanna be the new rendition,  
Just another boy with blind ambition,  
Just another boy with blind ambition

* * *

Please review…


	15. Secrets of the Signers

**A/N: During this chapter, I will not be using Jack's duel with Hunter Pace this time. So sorry to disappoint you, Atlas-Fans. Now, on with the show.**

Same disclaimer applied

"Talking"

'Thinking'

_Flashback_

_Distant Communication_

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

Deep in the hallways of The Facility, Yusei Fudo was bounded by two security guards leading him to the 'Chief's' office, "So how are you liking your stay here, Yusei?"

"So far, so good," Yusei answered sarcastically."

"That'll change soon enough," they stopped at a steel door and one of the guards answered on the small intercom beside it, "Chief Armstrong, we have the kid; are you ready for him?"

"_Yes,_" a low booming voice answered as the door opened.

Meanwhile, at the gym, Yusei was the talk of the prisoners as they awed at how Yusei beat Tanner without attacking with his monsters, but Jason Hutchins had a different agenda in mind.

"Hey, Yanagi," he asked as the old man hid his cards, "Is Yusei back? I'm getting worried about what that 'Chief' guy wants him for."

"Oh, he's fine. It's just routine."

"It's not just routine," Tanner corrected, "There are only two ways you get to meet the warden, Takasu Armstrong: you make a mean barbeque sauce, or he's mad. And Yusei may know how to duel like a pro, but I have a feeling he doesn't know squat about barbeque.

Later, in a high-tech interrogation lab, Yusei was meeting face-to-face with the warden of The Facility, Chief Takasu Armstrong, "So how do you like The Facility so far, Yusei? I'm sure it smells better than what you're used to back at the Satellite, as does my anchovy-and-onion breath, don't you think?" Armstrong blew in Yusei's face, who realized he made his point, because he recoiled in disgust.

Armstrong went behind Yusei and gripped his right arm, searching for some sort of mark he was told to find, "Rumor has it that you might be hiding something, and it's my job to find out if you are. Strip him, you two!" the Chief pushed Yusei to a couple of other officers, "And run your tests. Find out what this punk's hiding!"

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 12: Secrets of the Signers

* * *

**

"Just lie still and don't move a muscle."

Yusei was in nothing but his boxers and was shackled to a platform leading to an MRI machine. When he entered, he received several electrical shocks from the machine's system. When it was finished, the panel slid back out and stood Yusei upright. Armstrong lifted Yusei's hair by his head so his beady eyes met Yusei's semi-conscious ones.

"Now, you better hope we find what we supposed to find, and soon!" the Chief growled, "'Cause if you make me miss lunch, you and I are gonna have big, big problems, Satellite. See, when my blood sugar level gets too low, I get cranky, angry, and super-mean!

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

The scene changes to the great Public Security Headquarters. Director Goodwin and Vice-Director Lazar were walking down the hallway to Goodwin's office.

"Is Armstrong searching the boy as instructed?"

"He's with him right now, though he hasn't found the sign as of yet."

"I doubt the Chief could find anything not lathered in a sweet honey glaze."

"They're continuing to run all the normal tests, but with no results," when they entered the room, Lazar tapped on a holo-keyboard, "Here's Yusei's file, sir."

A screen appeared before Goodwin as he looked over the file, "Lives in the Satellite, few run-ins with Sector Security, aptitudes include dueling, engineering… urrg! There's nothing about who he is or where he came from!"

"We're, uh, working on that as we speak, Mr. Goodwin. But you have to consider, he may not be as special as we hope he is."

"Well, it's time I took a little trip to the Facility. I need to observe this Satellite first-hand to see whether or not you're right."

"And should I inform the chief of your impending arrival?"

"Yes, tell the Chief to send the boy back to his cell. I think I found a better way to find the information I seek… Wait. Is there a file on the boy Jason Hutchins?"

"I've search for anything relevant the night before, but there isn't the slightest information about him, not his origin, not his relatives, nothing."

"…I see, Lazar, also inform Mr. Armstrong to search Jason Hutchins as well. If he really has returned, then there's absolutely no doubt he has a mark as well."

"As you wish, sir," Lazar bowed and left the office. With him gone, Goodwin is finally alone with his thoughts.

'I didn't expect you to finally show yourself in New Domino City, Subject: D-5 Epsilon, its funny how you turned out to be one of the escapees from the Satellite… I may finally move on with the late Project: 5Ds.'

* * *

**Back at The Facility…**

"Have a nice trip!"

The guards tossed a drained and bruised Yusei back into the dark cell as Yanagi knelt to his side, "You look horrible! What did they do to you?!"

Yusei tried to pick himself up, only to be able to sit against the concrete wall, "Nothing… just ran some tests."

"Tests?"

"They must be looking for a mark that appeared on my arm when that dragon showed up at the Kaibadome."

"They must be looking for the Mark of the Dragon--!" but Yanagi clamped his mouth shut when a guard passed by. When he left, the close was clear. "You must be a Signer, Yusei!" Yanagi whispered.

"Signer?"

"I heard about them long ago. I thought the whole thing was just a legend. But now, the tale of the People of the Stars may actually be true."

Yusei sat back and listened. That old man may know something he wanted answered.

"You see, long ago there was a tribe," Yanagi explained, "They were brave and they worshiped a crimson dragon. And some could even summon the beast; they're called Signers. They were five Aztec warriors, and each have a mark of an ancient dragon they can call forth to aid them in battle. Don't you see? You're one of them!"

"…me, a Signer?" Yusei thought back to when the dragon rose from the Kaibadome and disappeared, "So you think I actually called out this Crimson Dragon?"

"That's exactly what I think. And as legend would have it, the mystical powers of the five dragons were eventually sealed, into 5 different Duel Monster cards. Huh, that means that you… OH! YUSEI! YOU MUST HAVE ONE!"

"One of the ancient dragons? …I'm not so sure."

"WHAT?! WELL, I HAVEN'T BEEN SO SURE OF ANYTHING IN MY ENTIRE LIFE! You'd let me see it, don't you?"

"I don't have it."

Yanagi cried, "You don't have it?! Just as well. In here, it would probably be confiscated. But why would the Chief think you're a Signer in the first place, huh? Unless somebody told him?"

**The next afternoon…**

"OK, ZIP IT, EVERYBODY!!!" the Chief announced to everyone in a giant room. The prisoners were in a giant assembly room, all lined up in groups. "Good, now that I got your undivided attention, allow me to introduce the Director General himself, Mr. Rex Goodwin! He's here to shed some light on a new program that he'll be implementing here in The Facility over the next few weeks. We're hoping that someone here has the 'mark' of a champion!"

Yusei gasped at what Armstrong had just said. Jason Hutchins and Bolt Tanner, who were behind him, noticed too. When Jason took a hard glance at Goodwin, a small jolt of lightning ran through his head, and a small fragment of his memory returned…

_**Flashback…**_

_He was standing inside a fairly sized laboratory, with wires that operate several machines all led connected to an old, white duel runner. He spotted two people each next to, and beside him. He couldn't make out their faces, nor could he his own. He was surrounded by several scientists and researcher, among all was the Director himself, Rex Goodwin._

"_You are chosen out of the many unfortunate in the Satellite. With your help, we may finally be able to achieve a feat far greater than any have dared to accomplish. And all we need now, for this dream to become a reality, is your cooperation. Now, the only question is… will you become the 5d's?"_

_All of them, including Jason, nodded…_

_**End Flashback.**_

"Good evening, everyone. If you would allow me a few moments of your time, I will explain the details of the pilot program that Chief Armstrong mentioned earlier," Goodwin lectured as he walked from the podium, and towards the crowd, "I'm sure that many of you feel that you've been dealt a bad hand in life, but I hope to change that. In fact, for a small few of you here, new opportunities are a handshake away. Your experiences in life may be a great service to the city. And that is why I decided to select two of you to take under my wing."

The Director stopped right beside Yusei, "And should those two people prove himself useful to me and the city, then I will be more than happy to return the favor: say, like a full pardon for example; a clean record, perhaps an invite to live here in New Domino City…and now it only a matter of picking only two of you to come and assist me."

* * *

**Later…**

"Alright, listen up!" Armstrong barked, "Everyone, back to your cells, immediately! The Director has made his decision!" everyone was led back to their rooms as instructed, especially for two certain people, "Hold right there, Yusei. You and your Satellite friend are the ones the Director has chosen."

Having wished luck from their cellmates, Yusei and Jason were left in the room with the Director and Chief, Jason became very nervous; he knew he felt a bad vibe from Goodwin the moment he came here, "So, tell me, what do you think of the little experiment I proposed," Goodwin asked.

"Well, I, for one, don't want any part of it," Yusei said.

"Me, nether," Jason added, "I don't think I'd like this experiment."

"YOU'LL TAKE PART AND LIKE IT YOU INSIGNI---"

But Goodwin cut the Chief off, "Oh, come now; I know you want some answers."

"Huh? What kind of answers, Goodwin?" Jason asked, "What do you mean?"

"Don't act so coy, Mr. Hutchins. I know all about those marks that you and Yusei have on your arms."

"Really? Then what do you know about it? What does it mean?"

"That is what I hope to uncover with your help. I can't do it alone."

"Well, I don't believe you," Yusei scolded, "You hiding something. You're just gonna use us."

"Of course; we all use each other. Look at our city. The Satellite needs the trash we give them, and they recycle it into energy and heat that we in turn use, Yusei."

"It's not trash that we need, its freedom."

"Fine, it's yours."

"Oh yeah? For what?"

Goodwin turned his back to the two Satellites and walked a few feet before stopping again, "Just come with me so I can study your Mark of the Dragon. Together, we may uncover the secrets of the Signers. But say no, and well, without that knowledge, we have a special place to send you both to…" a repugnant smile spread across the Director's face, "and who knows what would happen to you once you get there."

"What do you mean?" Jason asked.

"Well, here in The Facility, anything's possible."

"Then we'll take our chances," Yusei concluded.

"Yes, you will."

* * *

**One week later…**

Yusei and Jason were led by a dark hallway, accompanied by a couple of security guards. When the reached the light at the end, they've entered a large chamber, "Welcome to your new home-sweet-home, Satellites! We call it, The Hive!"

The Hive was the maximum-security prison where Armstrong likes to house the worse-of-the-worse, as described by one of the guards. A large tower rising endlessly upwards out of sight, with cells dotting the walls. What was really intimidating is the view of many inmates that were looking at them on the balconies, each giving them a blood-lusted look in their face.

On the top was none other that Chief Tasaku Armstrong, overseeing the two Satellites, cursing them for life and praying for the very worse. he picked a hair from out of his nose and watched as he blew it down the tower towards Yusei and Jason. "Hope you have a pleasant stay!" Armstrong called out, "The Director General send his regards!"

* * *

**Jack: Let's say we kick this Jukebox into overdrive!**

**World of Yu-Gi-Oh!**

Yugi Muto, where are you?  
The Pharaoh's calling me  
Solve the puzzle, transform  
In to the Duel King and teach me (Yami Yugi)

Summoning and defending (Come on let's go)  
Face down, flip effect, fusion is a vital key  
Exodia the Forbidden One  
It's in my possession, now the d-d-d-d-duel is done

Yo Weevil don't you understand?  
It's not the man in the fight  
It's the fight in the man

Now I am the master of the duel  
It's been my pleasure to meet you  
(Come on let's go)

Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh  
Oh, oh, oh, oh  
Welcome, welcome, welcome  
To the world of Yu-Gi-Oh!

Into the world we go, oh, oh, oh  
Welcome, welcome, welcome  
To the world of Yu-Gi-Oh!  
Its time to duel

Maxamillion Pegasus, don't put that eye on me  
I will attack, defend, until the end  
To taste sweet victory (Like Yami Yugi)  
Yo Pegasus can't you read my mind  
If you can, tell me what you find  
It's time to duel my darling valentine  
The art of dueling now we'll redefine

Dark Magician, and the Pot of Greed  
Cannon Solider does the damage  
It's the star chips that I need  
Now the battle phase is over  
and that card is over-rated  
(Come on lets go)

Now let's commence the transformation  
Welcome, welcome, welcome  
To the world of Yu-Gi-Oh!

Into the world we go, oh, oh, oh  
Welcome, welcome, welcome  
To the world of Yu-Gi-Oh!

Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh  
Oh, oh, oh, oh  
Welcome, welcome, welcome  
To the world of Yu-Gi-Oh!

Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh  
Oh, oh, oh, oh  
Welcome, welcome, welcome  
To the world of Yu-Gi-Oh!

Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh  
Oh, oh, oh, oh  
Welcome, welcome, welcome  
To the world of Yu-Gi-Oh!

Into the world we go, oh, oh, oh  
Welcome, welcome, welcome  
To the world of Yu-Gi-Oh!

Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh  
Oh, oh, oh, oh  
Welcome, welcome, welcome  
To the world of Yu-Gi-Oh! (repeat to fade)

* * *

**Jason: Now let's look what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5Ds:**

**Yanagi: This is the long-term maximum-security zone!**

**Yusei: You're abusing your authority, Armstrong!**

**Goodwin: Perhaps we need to challenge Jason and Yusei to a duel of some sort.**

**Tanner: You can't duel him! You don't have a deck!**

**Next time on Stardust Accelerator: Fight for Freedom**

**Armstrong: Alright, maggots! This is your last hour of free-time! Streached your legs and enjoy it while you got it!**

**Please review.**


	16. Fight for Freedom: Part 1

**Same disclaimer applied**

"Talking"

'Thinking'

_Flashback_

_Distant Communication_

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

When Yusei and Jason entered the Facility's 'Hive', the two were separated and each was sent to a cell on an opposite side of the chamber. Yusei was taken up several flights of stairs and thrown into a cell room. "Get in there! Don't expect a mint on your pillow," the guards joked as they slammed the door behind him.

"Aw, man! And I was just getting used to being on my own," The occupant of the cell, a violet-haired man wearing a blue and white sweater and jeans, was sitting on the lower of a bunk bed, giving Yusei a welcoming smile, "Say, uh, if it's not too much trouble, take the top bunk, would ya? I used to crash up there but I keep rolling over in my sleep and falling off the edge. The name's Alex, and I'd really appreciate it if—huh?"

Without saying a word, Yusei climbed to the top and just laid there, "No arguments? Nice! You name's Yusei, right?" the Satellite just remained silent. "…My last roommate was named 'Skelter' of something," Alex continued, "He wasn't much of a talker. I like talking---"

But Yusei wasn't listening. He was busy trying to estimate what had happened to him in the last few weeks, 'Was I really able to summon the Crimson Dragon?' he thought, 'I mean, It came out of nowhere, and then it just disappeared; and that mark on my arm… could Yanagi be right about me being this 'Signer'? …but why me? Why now?'

He was snapped out of his thoughts as Alex approached him on the top, "Hey, is it true about what they're saying about you?"

"What are they saying?"

"Lots, that you stood up to Tanner in a duel and that you royally schooled him! That's awesome! I challenged Tanner once after he and his buddy sort of…, well, they locked me in the laundry room for two days. But, yeah, it was kinda funny 'cause—"

"I have a headache, Alex. Can we save the chit-chat for later?"

"Oh, sure, OK!"

"Psst! Hey, Yusei!" someone whispered through the cell bars; Yuesi sat up right and realized it was Tenzen Yanagi.

"They brought _you _here?!"

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 13: Fight for Freedom**

**Part 1: The Lockdown Duel

* * *

**

Moments later, Yusei and Yanagi went to the middle of the nearest walkway where they found Jason Hutchins and Bolt Tanner, "You here too, Tanner?"

"How are ya', kid?" the former Professional greeted, "Glad to see you made it here in one piece."

"I hate to interrupt, but doesn't anyone know what we're doing here?" the old man hid behind Yusei, "This is the long-term maximum security zone! There must've been a paperwork error. I was at the top of the release list!"

"Hey, you and me both, Grandpa."

"What's going on here, Yusei? Do you know what this is about?"

"What did they tell you when they brought you here, Tanner?" Yusei asked."

"Oh, you know, some nonsense about needing to restructure the system, blah, blah, blah. I don't believe a thing they say."

"So what do you know about the guy who's in charge here?"

"Armstrong's a bully. He does whatever he wants. He's a tyrant. He lies. And when he's got a bone to pick, he'll do anything to pick it. Why do you ask, kid? Did you go and do something to get on that gordo's bad side? Are we here because of you?"

* * *

"GYYAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!" Speaking of the Chief, Takasu Armstrong watched Yusei Fudo and Jason Hutchins through a security camera in the Hive inside his office. He was in a fit of rage. "THERE'S NO WAY THOSE KIDS ARE SIGNERS! NO WAY!" he barked, "They're just a pair of worthless punks from the Satellite! That's all they are! I know garbage when I see it!

**Flashback…**

_Armstrong: "If they're Signers, I'm a schoolgirl!"_

_Armstrong met Director Goodwin in his office just after the assembly that day._

_Goodwin: "You looked everywhere for the Marks of the Dragon?"_

_Armstrong: "Yes; everywhere!"_

_Goodwin: "I see. Then perhaps we should challenge Jason and Yusei to a duel of some sort!"_

_Armstrong: "I I'll take on those pieces of garbage right now!"_

_Goodwin: "Armstrong, we need them to want to duel you. Perhaps that is the key to making their marks reappear. You must arrange a situation where those Satellites will want to duel."_

**End Flashback.**

"I KNOW JUST WHAT TO DO!!!"

* * *

It was nightfall and the entire prison was on lockdown, meaning it was bedtime for the inmates. Everyone, especially Yusei and Alex, were back in their cells, locked and secured.

"So what did they tell you when they transferred you?" the later asked Yusei, not in bed yet, "that you're only gonna be here for a short time while they process some paperwork? That you'll be back to the normal detention area before you knew it? They tell everyone that, but no one ever gets out of this place. I was transferred here after starting a food fight in the Facility cafeteria. The said I needed a few days to cool off. That was 4 years ago. …so I decided to take matters into my own hands!"

Alex went towards his bed and pulled up the mattress, "Here's the real reason I wanted the bottom bunk," under it is a giant hole through the concrete surface. "It's amazing what you can do, with a knife, a spoon and a whole lot of time, Yusei."

A few minutes later, Yusei and Alex went through the hole and exited to the Facility rooftop. They were careful no to get sighted by any of the wandering spotlights. When they reached the corner, they can see the upper level of New Domino and the moon in the sky high above it. "Check it out: the real moon and everything. That opening is the gateway to freedom, my friend."

"…it's kinda high."

"I got some friends on the outside coming tomorrow night."

"What about these beauty marks?" Yusei pointed to his criminal mark, "As soon as you get out of here, they'll start transmitting a signal and they'll find you—"

"No they won't! One of my friends is a hacker with super-skills; he'll jam the system. I'll have a window of about an hour after I escape to disappear. So, what do you say, roomie? Are you coming with? This is a one-time opportunity, buddy, 'cause as soon as the jailers figured out how I got out, they'll seal those openings and that'll be that."

"I'm in, but there's just one thing… well, three things, actually."

"Right, let me guess: Tanner, Hutchins and the old man?" Yusei nodded.

"…(sigh) fine, they're in. but those guys better not hold us back. I mean it, man. If those guys slow us down and blow our chance of getting out of here …there won't be another."

* * *

**Later…**

It was total silence in the city of New Domino. All was quiet except for the sound of a duel runner. Jack Atlas was up all night speeding through his personal track, trying to summon this 'Crimson Dragon'.

'C'mon! Why can't I make that big lizard appear? I've been circling this track for hours and still nothing!' he thought back to when the dragon debuted, and that the circumstances were completely different than they were now.

'It seems I can't summon it by myself. Maybe the only way to make the Crimson Dragon appear, is to duel Yusei again; and when I do, he's gonna wish that mark has never appeared!" Jack accelerated around the track as the sun gradually rose from the horizon.

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

Back at the facility, Bolt Tanner was unaware, but he was in for a rude awakening this morning. While sitting alone on his bunk, his door unlocked, entering Takasu Armstrong, followed by a couple of guards. "It's lunchtime already?" Tanner joked.

Armstrong walked towards him and leaned his arm against the top bunk, so he and Tanner could see eye-to-eye. "A little birdie told me you had some magazines smuggled in here. That's a no-no."

"Magazines? Hmph, I'm not interested in keeping up with celebrities," Tanner spat, "Your little bird's singing a lie!"

Armstrong growled, "Are you talking back to me?! Break him, boys!" on command, his two guards marched up and grabbed Tanners wrists behind him.

* * *

Things were not going well for Tanner. He was actually being accused for what he clearly didn't do. And it was only going to get worse, when he was being interrogated in a foreign room, with his head slammed onto a nearby table.

"I'm sure you had a little help, Tanner. So tell me who helped you out, and _maybe_ I'll go easy on both of you."

"If anyone had a hand in something I didn't do, it you?!" Tanner struggled to hold his head up, despite one of the guards holding it down, "And even if I did do it, I'm no (a)Sammy Gravano! I ain't selling out for nobody!"

"So first you snuck in some reading materials, and now you're blaming me for it?! No sweat; I got a hundred recipes for making maggot like you talk and 99 of then aren't pleasant at all…" Armstrong gripped Tanner's jaw and actually tried to rip it out, "and this, is number 100!" the Chief was hurting him so badly that Tanner's arduous screams can be heard throughout the facility.

* * *

**Meanwhile, in the Hive…**

Yusei was sat on the floor, back against the wall of the cell, when he heard a commotion outside. Curiosity aroused, he stood and crossed to the door, passing by Alex, who was resting on the lower bunk. Outside, Yusei saw Bolt Tanner being tossed by a couple of Armstrong's guards on one of the numerous walkways criss-crossing the tower structure. The former Pro Duelist was bruised and scarred; clearly he had been assaulted or tortured.

"I found smuggled magazines in Tanner's cell!" the Chief announced, "You all know that's against the rules, but I know he couldn't have gotten them alone! His accomplice has one hour to step forward! After that, everybody here's gonna pay the price!" all the prisoners argued.

"Oh, c'mon!"

"You can't punish all of us for something one guy did!"

"That's right!"

"Don't like it? Then I suggest you figure out who helped him out! If I were you maggots, I'd start by questioning his friends, especially those Satellites Yusei Fudo and Jason Hutchins!" Yusei fermented on Armstrong's very words. He had no right to treat the inmates like this, criminals or not.

"Look people, there's no need for everyone to suffer." The Chief continued, "Tanner's friend just needs to fess up. If he doesn't, then I have no problem putting all of you in permanent lockdown! That'll give me time to kick back and watch my soaps! GHEHAHAHAHAHA—"

"GET REAL!!!"

It didn't take long for Armstrong to find out that outburst came from Yusei Fudo, "You got something you wanna say, newbie?!"

Yusei let out an inaudible growl, "There are no magazines; we both know that!"

"GHEHAHAHAHA!!! No magazines?! So I'm just punishing tanner because I feel like it?!"

"I don't know why you're doing this, but I know that Tanner wouldn't do anything wrong! You're abusing your authority, Armstrong!"

"Whoa-ho-ho! You just accused me of being cruel and unfair! That really hurts my feelings!" Armstrong cracked, "C'mon! Show me the love! Tell me you're sorry, Satellite!" Yusei just remained silent, not wanting to respond. "So that's how you want it? Well, I can't just let you accuse me of being unfair on front of everyone! To prove that I'm a reasonable man, I'll let you and Hutchins duel me out here where your fellow inmates can watch, and if you win, I'll pardon Tanner's offense. _But,_ if I happen to win the duel…"

"Then no one but me gets put in lockdown," Yusei finished.

Takasu sneered, "You got a deal."

"Hold on! I want to add to the stakes!" Jason shouted through his cell, "I've been hearing a lot of complaints about how you would lengthen the inmate's sentences anytime they were about to get released! So if Yusei and I win, then all the prisoners here get half their initiated sentences, as long as they're on probation when they get out! I'll take whatever you dish out if I lose!"

"So beat it! We duel tonight at 8:30 sharp! Don't be late!"

"Wait, tonight?!" Alex complained from his bunk, "But tonight we're suppo—"

"What are you doing?! Get you hands off of me!" a pleading cry came from Tenzen Yanagi, who was being carried to Chief Armstrong, "Put me down! Put me down!"

"Check it out, boss: contraband!" the guards found Yanagi's cards all over his person,"This guy's got cards stashed all over the place!"

"Wait! Those are my beloved treasures! I traveled the whole world to find those! You can't just take them!"

But Armstrong doesn't like a whiner, so with a swift swing of his arm, he sent the old man flying a few feet in the opposite direction, knocking him unconscious. The chief presented his confiscated cards to the prisoners, "What have I told you clowns about cards?!" he snarled, "Alright, maggots! This is definitely your last hour of free time! Stretch your legs and enjoy it while you got it!" and with that, he left the tower with the prisoners moaning and whining in despondency.

"Yusei, we're supposed to sneak out tonight!" Alex argued, "What gives, man?!"

"…I have to, Alex."

The moment the doors unlocked, both Yusei and Jason rushed from their respective cells as they made it to the one the guards threw Tanner and Yanagi into. "Are you guys okay?"

Tanner tried to get up despite all the bruises, "What were you guys thinking?!"

"—I know, I know."

"You can't duel him! Neither of you even have a deck! If you were hoping to use mine, Chief took my cards from me earlier."

The two Satellites gasped. Tanner and Yanagi were the only hope they had left. But with their decks taken, what are they supposed to do? When more people came to comfort Tanner, they left the cell, with an irritated Alex waiting for Yusei.

"You get it yet? Armstrong did all this to set you up," he implied, "He figured he can make you think he can turn the others against you, or he could take care of the friendship you have with Tanner. Either way, man, it was check-mate. He had you in his hand from the get-go. …look, let's…let's just escape, the two of us. Those guys are dead-weight in their current state."

"…I can't leave them behind."

"Sure you can! You don't owe anybody anything, man! C'mon!"

"I won't ditch my friends for my own benefit!" Yusei defended, "I'm not leaving them behind just to get ahead! That's just not what I'm about, Alex!"

"Grrr! You're a real piece of work, you know?" Alex ran off defeated, "forget you! Sheesh!"

"Although that guy does have a point, Yusei," Jason said, "How are we gonna pull this off without Duel monster cards?"

"…I wish I knew."

"Your name's Yusei and Jason, right?" behind the duo are a group of prisoners, and none looked too happy, "A bunch of us would like to see you on the middle walkway. We wanna talk about something." Pretty soon, they were surrounded on both sides on one of the bridges. There was no telling what would happen…

* * *

**Much time later…**

8:30 has come on the spot. The door to his cell had unlocked so the guard can direct  
Yusei to the duel area.

"So long, pal." Alex said acidly.

"This isn't goodbye."

Moments later both Yusei and Jason were lead to the meeting point of several gantries, and facing them was Chief Takasu Armstrong, "Well, here they are: the little punks with the big mouths. And here I thought you might chicken out. After all, you're not allowed to have a deck in The Facility," he sneered, "And you have to have a deck in order to duel someone. So, uh, since y'all are showing up empty-handed, I guess that means I win by forfeit! Easy enough! Now, get 'em outta my sight!" the guards were about to obey until…

"We have decks…" Yusei and Jason each took out a deck of cards from their coat pocket, "…right here."

"WHA—WHAT THE…WHERE DID YOU FIND THOSE!!??"

"You don't get it," Yusei lectured, "You think we're a bunch of punks who'd gladly turn on each other. That's not how it is."

_**FLASHBACK…**_

_Yusei and Jason were surrounded by many prisoners one of the walkways of the hive. No one knew what would happen next until one of them stepped forward._

"_We know the Chief is lying about what Tanner did, so we wanna say thanks for risking your freedoms to save ours. And to make sure you beat the Chief, take this," he reached inside his jacket pocket and pulled out a Duel Monster card to give to Yusei, "It's my most prized possession."_

_Another stepped forward and took out a card to give to Jason, "Cards are illegal in here, but we all have that one favorite card we just couldn't let go of. I hung on to this one for sentimental reasons. It's a trap card, but it could come in handy."_

_One after another, an inmate each gave Yusei or Jason a single card they kept. One had his hidden behind a family photo, "This goy may look cute, but he packs a mean punch!"_

_Another had his hidden under his dreadlocks, "This spell card got me out of a lot of tough jams."_

_Any and every prisoner had a card hidden in a special place, whether it be inside a book, under a mattress, or even under a toilet seat._

"_You can equip this onto almost any monster!"_

"_Use this card to put Armstrong in his place!"_

"_I kept this one hidden in my shoe. Hopefully it don't smell too bad."_

_The Satellite duo looked at every single card the prisoners gave them, "With everyone giving us one card…" Yusei held up his new deck, "we can win this!"_

_All the prisoners cheered. It was thanks to them that Jason and Yusei were now able to duel Armstrong._

…_**End Flashback.**_

The Chief growled, "Well alright, then. Even though you're breaking a rule I'm willing to uphold my end of the deal. You three! Hurry up and prepare the duel disks!" each of the three guards equipped each player a black duel disk, but there was something attached to them from the floor.

"What's this chain al about?" Yusei wondered out loud.

"Oh that's, uh, just to make things a little fun. Every time we take life point damage, that chain will sort of give you a little tickle."

"Wait, what kind of little tickle?" Jason asked.

"You'll find out soon," all three duelists inserted their decks and drew five cards.

"Let's go!"

**Yusei & Jason: 4000**

**Armstrong: 4000**

**(A/N): ("__")= the prisoner audience of this duel will be abbreviated this way.**

"The first move's mine!" Yusei drew his sixth card and quickly took out a monster from his hand, "and I summon (1) Great Phantom Thief(1000/1000) in defense mode!" a man wearing a blue top hat and cape, and a red mask appeared kneeling in front of Yusei."

("Alright, yeah! That's my card!")

"Your move, Armstrong," Yusei said, ending his turn.

Tanner: "This'll be tough. Sure, they scraped together a deck with everyone's cards, but it's just a big pile of mismatched monsters and traps. And they didn't have much time to strategize."

Yanagi: "They can pull it off. I know it."

Tanner: "I hope you're right."

"I draw!" Armstrong drew his sixth card and grinned, "I summon, (3) Iron Chain Repairman(1600/1000)!" In a flash of energy, a greasy man with iron-grey skin appeared, wearing overalls with chains for straps, a red bandana and goggles over his eyes. An immense sledgehammer was clutched in his hands, "This big fell's way more powerful than that sorry specter of yours! Repairman, smash that pathetic phantom into the floor!" The giant hammer man leapt up with his hammer high above him, and then in one swift move, he swung it downward on top of the phantom, reducing him to pixels.

("Aw man, a lotta good my card did him.")

"That phantom may have been in defense mode, but Repairman's got a special ability: when it destroys a monster in battle, it also gets to slam you with 300 points of damage," the chief's grin widened, "Brace yourselves, Satellites; this part may be a little shocking."

**Yusei & Jason: 3700**

**Armstrong: 4000**

What happened next horrified the entire audience (besides Armstrong and the guards). A surge of electricity shot from the chains connected to Yusei and Jason's duel disks, shocking him for real. The Satellite Duo screamed in pain as the shock ran through them, and then knelt over slightly as it ended.

"GHEHAHAHAHA!!!! Sorry 'bout that, but I did say it was gonna be shocking. These duel disks we're using have been souped up with static-generation devices," Armstrong patted the duel disk on his arm, "Whenever any of us take any kind of life point damage, this bed boy generates a little…jolt."

"What?!" Yusei growled.

"This is a correctional facility, Yusei. Everything that goes on around here is for the betterment of society. Mess up and do something wrong, you get a little shock. Maybe that'll teach you to make the right choice next time," the Chief sets two reverse cards and ended his turn.

"It's my turn," Jason called, "And I summon (2) The Kickman(1300/300) to the field in attack mode!" In a flash of light, a pot-bellied man with pallid purple skin appeared, wearing brown leather trousers, his muscles bulging.

("My dad gave me that card when I was five!)

("Go, Jason! C'mon! Kick him into the next century!")

"Next I equip him with the Stim-Pack equip-spell card! This buffs him up another 700 ATK points!" Kickman roared as his muscles expanded, increasing his power.

The Kick Man: (ATK: 2000)

"Alright, Kick Man! It's time to take out his monster!" Kick leapt up into the air, ready to deliver a devastating attack.

"Too bad that attack's just gonna slam into my Soul Anchor!" Armstrong activated one of his reverse cards and Repairman roared as it was enveloped in a red glow, "Now, by equipping this trap card onto Iron Chain Repairman, I can render him indestructible in battle!" when Kickman's attack connected, his foot just bounced off the hammer-man's chest and he was sent back to his side of the field."

"Maybe, but you're still taking damage."

**Yusei & Jason: 3700**

**Armstrong: 3600**

Yanagi: "Alright!"

Tanner: "Let's see how _he_ likes getting a little jolt!"

As the inmates watched eagerly, the Chief let out a blood-curdling scream. But then that scream turned into a hearty laugh, "Oh, I don't believe this. My static generator isn't working! Maybe they didn't wire it right."

"Yeah, that's it!" Yusei snapped sarcastically.

Tanner "You have got to be kidding me."

Alex: You cheater! That duel disk was never hooked up to shock you and you know it, Armstrong!"

"GHEHAHAHAHAHA! I resent what you're applying there, kid. I can't help it if this thing breaks, can I?"

("So, fix it!")

("You're a liar!")

Tanner: "I knew this wouldn't be on the up-and-up! The Chief's a cheat!"

Alex: "He's not being fair, Yusei! Stop the duel and walk away!"

"He can't walk away! And neither of them will be walking away unless they decide to give up and forfeit the match to me. But if they do that, then they're going straight to the hold, where they can spend all their time thinking about how they just gave up," Armstrong started his turn, "Moving on! I summon (4) Iron Chain Snake(800/1200)!" With a hiss, a snake with its body grotesquely stretched over a length of chain appeared. "This monster can equip to a monster on your side of the field, holding it down by 800 ATK and DEF. so much for your Kick Man's DEF boost," Iron Chain Snake leapt up and dropped itself onto The Kick Man, burdening itself onto its slolders.

The Kick Man: (ATK: 1200)

"And now's a perfect time for my Iron Chain Repairman to attack!" the Repairman slammed its hammer onto Kickman, afterwards shocking Yusei and Jason with the static generator.

**Yusei & Jason: 3300**

**Armstrong: 3600**

"Don't forget, every time Iron Chain Repairman manages to destroy a monster in battle, you get hit with a whopping 300 points of damage," yet another shock ran through their disks.

**Yusei & Jason: 3000**

**Armstrong: 3600**

"But that's not all. Since Kick Man was saddled with Iron Chain Snake, you have to discard one card from your deck for each of Kick Man's power levels. Look, it's obvious you're losing, but I want you to know, if I'm being hard on you, it's all in the mane of rehabilitation. You see, you left me no choice but to use you both as an example for the others. Now get rid of those three cards!" Yusei and Jason each did as instructed, taking 3 cards from the top of their respective decks.

**Yusei's deck: (31)**

**Jason's deck: (31)**

"If you think you can still win, get up. If not, stay down and we'll call it a day. GHEHAHAHAHA!!!!"

All the prisoners tried to cheer on the Satellite duo, trying to get off the floor, but it was all to no avail to Armstrong's cackling.

("RISE UP!!!")

("RISE UP!!!")

("RISE UP!!!")

**TO BE CONTINUED…

* * *

**

**DUEL-MON DATABASE:**

**Great Phantom Thief**

**Stats:** [Spellcaster/Effect] Level 3 ATK/1000 DEF/1000

**Attribute: **Dark  
**Description:** Each time this card inflicts Battle Damage to your opponent's Life Points, declare the name of 1 card. Then see your opponent's hand and discard all copies of the declared card in his/her hand to the Graveyard.

**The Kick Man**

**Stats:** [Zombie/Effect] Level 3 ATK/1300 DEF/300

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:** When this card is Special Summoned successfully, you can equip 1 appropriate Equip Spell Card from your Graveyard to this card.

**Iron Chain Repairman**

**Stats:** [Warrior/Effect] LV4 ATK/1600 DEF/1200  
**Attribute:** Earth  
**Description:** When this card destroys a monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard, inflict 300 damage to your opponent. Once per turn, you can Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower "Iron Chain" monster from your Graveyard, except "Iron Chain Repairman". This card cannot attack the turn you activate this effect.

**Iron Chain Snake**

**Stats:** [Reptile/Effect] LV3 ATK/ 800 DEF/1200  
**Monster Class-Type:** Earth  
**Card #:** CSOC-EN018  
**Found In:** Crossroads of Chaos  
**Description:** During your Main Phase, you can equip this card to 1 face-up monster your opponent controls. That monster loses 800 ATK and DEF. When it is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard, its controller sends cards equal to its Level from the top of their Deck to the Graveyard.

* * *

**Jack: Let's say we kick this Jukebox into overdrive!**

**Believe In:**

**(Ahahaha! Ahahaha! Ahahaha!)  
You always find me (you always find me) makin' time for you,  
So many dreams to come true!  
No room for failure, we can't be fooled.  
Take a look at (take a look at) what we've got:  
Each other for one another,  
Friends to the end.  
Here we go!  
We stand together through these hard times.  
Don't let these days pass you on by.  
I ****believe**** in, you better ****believe**** that  
I ****believe**** in you. (You! You!) Oh (Oh!) yea!  
(Ahahaha! Ahahaha!)  
(Ahahaha! Ahahaha!)  
(Ahahaha! Ahahaha! Ahahaha! Ahahaha!)  
So now you look at me, while I'm lookin' at you.  
I think to myself: I'm watchin' out for you!  
Let's take a chance together never had before!  
When I think about (When I think about you) thinkin' of you,  
It feels like there's nothing else to do.  
We took a chance together,  
Here we go!  
We stand together through these hard times.  
Don't let these days pass you on by.  
I ****believe**** in, you better ****believe**** that  
I ****believe**** in you. (You! You!) Oh (Oh!)  
I know that (Ah!)  
You want it all!  
(Oh!)  
(Oh!)  
We stand together through these hard times.  
Don't let these days pass you on by.  
I ****believe**** in, you better ****believe**** that  
I ****believe**** in you. (You! You!) Oh (You!)  
I ****believe**** in, you better ****believe**** that (****believe**** it's true!)  
I ****believe**** in you. (Oh!) Oh (Oh!) yea!  
(Oh yea!)  
(Oh!)

* * *

**

**Jason: Now let's look what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5Ds:**

**Armstrong: I'm gonna make sure you Satellites don't leave The Facility for a long time!**

**Tanner: C'mon, Grandpa, there's gotta be something Yusei and Jason can do to stop Armstrong's spell!**

**Yanagi: There is, but I don't thing the guards are gonna let him run away and hide!**

**Yusei: These cards are the heart and hope of every man in here!**

**Armstrong: Then I'll be sure to destroy them as soon as I'm done with you!**

**Next time on stardust Accelerator: Fight for Freedom-Part 2**

**Armstrong: Put them all, in a lockdown!

* * *

**

**Please review.**

**(a) **If you had spent years working with the Gotti crime family, watched dozens killed for disloyalty, disrespect, or simple bad manners, and made plenty of cash in the process, would you decide to rat on said crime family's boss? Sammy Gravano did it and lived to talk about it on '60 Minutes', elevating the art of the snitch.


	17. Fight for Freedom: Part 2

Same disclaimer applied

"Talking"

'Thinking'

_Flashback_

_Distant Communication_

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

**Yusei: Now let's get up to speed with YuGiOh 5Ds:**

Alex: "He's not being fair, Yusei! Stop the duel and walk away!"

"He can't walk away! And neither of them will be walking away unless they decide to give up and forfeit the match to me. But if they do that, then they're going straight to the hold, where they can spend all their time thinking about how they just gave up," Armstrong started his turn, "Moving on! I summon (4) Iron Chain Snake(800/1200)!" With a hiss, a snake with its body grotesquely stretched over a length of chain appeared. "This monster can equip to a monster on your side of the field, holding it down by 800 ATK and DEF. so much for your Kick Man's DEF boost," Iron Chain Snake leapt up and dropped itself onto The Kick Man, burdening itself onto its shoulders.

The Kick Man: (ATK: 1200)

"And now's a perfect time for my Iron Chain Repairman to attack!" the Repairman slammed its hammer onto Kickman, afterwards shocking Yusei and Jason with the static generator.

"Don't forget, every time Iron Chain Repairman manages to destroy a monster in battle, you get hit with a whopping 300 points of damage," yet another shock ran through their disks.

"But that's not all. Since Kick Man was saddled with Iron Chain Snake, you have to discard one card from your deck for each of Kick Man's power levels. Look, it's obvious you're losing, but I want you to know, if I'm being hard on you, it's all in the mane of rehabilitation. You see, you left me no choice but to use you both as an example for the others. Now get rid of those three cards!" Yusei and Jason each did as instructed, taking 3 cards from the top of their respective decks.

"If you think you can still win, get up. If not, stay down and we'll call it a day. GHEHAHAHAHA!"

All the prisoners tried to cheer on the Satellite duo, trying to get off the floor, but it was all to no avail to Armstrong's cackling.

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 14: Fight for Freedom**

**Part 2: United Resistance

* * *

**

Back in The Facility, our heroes are in what could be the last duel they could ever play. With static generator devices equipped onto their duel disks, they get electrocuted every time they receive damage.

**Yusei & Jason: 3000**

**Armstrong: 3600**

**Yusei's deck: (31)**

**Jason's deck: (31)**

"I'm gonna make sure you Satellites don't leave The Facility for a long time!" Armstrong cackled, "And no matter what you do to try and stop me from winning this duel, I'm not taking my eyes off the prize!"

Despite the multiple shocks the received, Yusei and Jason managed to find the strength to stand up again.

"I'm glad to see this duel isn't too shocking for you, Satellites!"

* * *

Tanner: "Well, that's easy for Armstrong to say, especially since his duel disk isn't connected to the static generator!"

* * *

"It's my, turn!" Yusei called, "and I think I'll start by playing the spell card, Nightmare Steelcage!" With a loud CRASH, a great dome shaped cage dropped down around Yusei and Jason, its bars covered in spikes.

"Don't you know you're already behind bars?" the Chief cracked.

"Yeah, well, these bars are going to keep us safe from your static generator shocks, for the next 2 rounds!"

"Feh!That little cage won't save you."

"We'll see. Now I lay down a face-down and end my turn." A reverse card appeared on Yusei's field.

("Steelcage! That was my card! See? I told you my deck wasn't lame!")

("Listen, I said that you were lame, not your stinkin' deck.")

"Shut it, you two! You're both lame!" Armstrong started his Draw Phase and sneered, "Now, you might think you're safe with that steel cage stopping my monsters from attacking you, but I don't need to attack in order to win this duel. And here's why: first I play Iron Chain Snake!" another giant snake appeared on the field, "and since I have Iron Chain Repairman already on the field, its special ability lets me bring out another monster, so I think I'll bring back another Iron Chain Snake!" and with a downward swing of his Repairman's sledgehammer, the serpent returned with a his.

"Next up, I'm activating these two spell cards," two continuous spells appeared on either side of Soul Anchor, "and with them in play, this match is all but a lock for me because with a total of level 10 Iron Chain monsters on my field, my Poison Chain spell card forces you to discard 10 cards from your decks if my monsters don't attack. And when your decks run out of cards to play, Satellite, you know what happens, don't ya?"

Yusei and Jason cringed as their disks glowed a dark aura, "We lose."

"Now, I hope you don't have anything planned for the next couple of years, 'cause once I win this duel…" Armstrong waved to the Satellite Duo, "you can wave bye-bye to your futures," they took ten cards from the top of their decks and let their disks consume them through their graveyard slots.

**Yusei's deck: (20)**

**Jason's deck: (21)**

"So, with those gone, you only got 20 cards left."

* * *

Tanner: "At this rate, Yusei and Jason won't survive for more than two more rounds! C'mon, Grandpa, there's gotta be something they can do to stop Armstrong's spell!"

Yanagi: "There is, but I don't think the guards are gonna let them run away and hide!"

* * *

"Now I activate the spell, Paralyzing Chain, which shocks away 300 life points whenever you suffer a deck-destruction effect," Armstrong's second spell shone as Yusei and Jason both receive a surge of electricity from their duel disk.

**Yusei & Jason: 2700**

**Armstrong: 3600

* * *

**

Back in Alex's cell, he was watching the clock for the allotted time, '8:50, it's almost time. Sorry I couldn't wait any longer.' Alex lifted up his mattress and found the giant hole he dug, "You had your chance, Yusei," that was all he said before he jumped into the hole.

* * *

Back at the duel, the Satellite Duo struggled to stand up after receiving that electrical shock.

"Look's like that cage isn't so safe after all, huh, Satellites?" Armstrong cracked "I guess those cards are as useless as the people who gave them to you."

"I'll show you useless!" Jason began his turn.

"I'm sure you will, _if_ you can last."

* * *

Meanwhile on the rooftop, as soon as Alex came outside, he saw a small flashing light on one of the giant roadways above, a giant signal. It was time for Alex to take his leave, but was hesitant.

"Maybe Yusei was right about not leaving his friends here," he thought aloud as he thought back when he argued with Yusei…

_**Flashback…**_

"…_look, let's…let's just escape, the two of us. Those guys are dead-weight in their current state."_

"…_I can't leave them behind."_

"_Sure you can! You don't owe anybody anything, man! C'mon!"_

"_I won't ditch my friends for my own benefit!" Yusei defended, "I'm not leaving them behind just to get ahead! That's just not what I'm about, Alex!"_

…_**End Flashback.**_

Alex clenched his fist, "Well, I'm not about that either, Yusei."

* * *

**Back at the duel…**

"It's my turn!" Jason called, "I'm throwing down three face-downs…" three reverse cards appeared.

"And I'll play this: the spell, Psychic Cyclone!" one of Armstrong's reverse cards flipped up, "Now I get to choose one of your face-downs, and if I can guess if it's a trap or a spell, not only do you loose it, but I get another draw. And I have a feeling that in this game, the House always wins." He began selecting one of His reverse cards, "Eeney, meeny, miney, mo! Feh, i…, …, …, take the left one as a trap card! I'm right, aren't I?" Jason dismayed as a cyclone of energy tore through the card, revealing it as the Dust Tornado trap card.

"What can I tell you, Jason? My instincts never let me down," Armstrong picked some hair from out of his nose and blew it away, "Now, with that trap card out of the picture, your chances of beating me and getting out of here just got a whole lot slimmer!"

* * *

Tanner: "No way! I smell something fishy and it's not his B.O.!"

* * *

"Now I can draw 1 card from my deck due to Psychic Cyclone's effect," Armstrong drew once.

"I'll just park a face-down for now," one more reverse card appeared, "it's your move, Armstrong."

"Then I guess I'll draw again," Armstrong chuckled, "I summon out (3) Iron Chain Blaster(1100/0)!" In a flash of energy, a violet-armored warrior with a cannon of rock set into his chest-plate appeared, spikes of rock jutting out from his back. Chains adorned his amour, and he was forced to crouch down to hold his weapon steady, "and since I couldn't attack you because of your Steel Cage's effect, my Poison Chain forces you to throw away 12 more cards from your decks," the Chief pointed a finger at the Satellite Duo, "So with them gone, next round, y'all finished!"

Yusei and Jason each discarded 12 cards.

**Yusei's deck: (8)**

**Jason's deck: (8)**

"Don't be mad, this is just a game," Takasu said as he gently tugged his beard, "Of course in this game, if you happen to lose, you have to kiss all your freedom goodbye. But in the meantime, let's say we let the effect of my Paralyzing Chain put a charge into this duel!" the spell card glowed as Yusei and Jason took a shock from the generator.

**Yusei & Jason: 2400**

**Armstrong: 3600**

"Shocking move, isn't it? And it's only gonna get worse, 'cause now I can load my blaster with Iron Chain Snake to inflict 800 points of damage and break through your barrier!" Iron Chain Snake was tributed into a sphere of iron that flowed into Iron Chain Blaster's cannon before firing out, taking more of the Satellites' life points and inflicting another surge of electricity.

**Yusei & Jason: 1600**

**Armstrong: 3600**

"And now I can return Iron Chain Snake due to Iron Chain Repairman's special ability!" and with a downward swing of Repairman's sledge hammer, the serpent returned to the field.

* * *

Tanner: "Yusei! If you guys don't stop the chief soon, his monsters are gonna totally destroy the both of you!"

* * *

"That's metaphorically speaking of course," Armstrong pointed out, "that's not to say with that Steel-cage vanishing this turn, their attacks are gonna charge you into submission," the giant cage dissolved into red stars as the Satellite Duo strived to stay in the game.

"Looks to me like your time behind bars backfired," Armstrong chuckled as he twiddled with his nose-hairs, "I mean, all you each have left are eight card in those jokes you called decks."

That was when Yusei had enough. He was never one to let others abuse other people, "These cards are the heart and hope of every man in here!"

"Then I'll be sure to destroy them as soon as I'm done with you!"

"I won't let that happen!" but before Yusei could start his turn, a brief moment happened as all the electricity went out in the room.

"Somebody turn on the lights!" and as if the Chief's words were like magic, the lights turned back on just as quickly. Armstrong whispered to the small intercom on his collar, making sure nobody was looking, "What was that?"

"_We're not sure, sir; but we're checking the generator control room now."_

"Hmph, let's get back to business."

When Yusei looked towards his cell, he noticed that Alex was no longer inside, 'That blackout must've been caused by his friends on the outside. Wish I was with you, but I have my friends to think about. Good luck, man.' "Okay, chief, I'm playing this: the Pot of Greed spell card! This lets me draw two more times!" Yusei drew twice.

"And I'm playing this: the trap card: Jar of Greed!" Jason revealed one of his reverse cards, "and thanks to this card I get to draw one more card!" Jason drew once.

"Ha! With each card you remove from your decks, you're one step closer to losing this duel!"

**Yusei's deck: (5)**

**Jason's deck: (7)**

"Not if I play my second face-down: Call of the Haunted! This lets me bring back a monster from my graveyard in Attack Mode! And guess whom I'm bringing back with it, Armstrong! You should get a big kick out of this!" in a flash of light, The Kick Man appeared in a fighting stance.

"You brought back Kick Man?" Armstrong mocked, "He's as valuable as you are!"

"You shouldn't estimate the power of any card, especially one that can join forces with a card in our graveyard."

"But your graveyard is full of—"

"Cards you forced us to get rid of," Yusei finished for Jason, "so it seems that your strategy is the one that backfired, because now I can call on Axe of Despair from my graveyard to give Kick Man and extra 1000 ATK points!" Kick became equipped with a gruesome-looking steel axe, with a wooden handle, giving him a power boost.

The Kick Man: (ATK: 2300)

* * *

Tanner: "Nice one! Of course, I did the same combo back in my days on the Pro Circuit!"

* * *

"Next up, I'm summoning (2) Exiled Force(1000/1000)!" In a flash of light, a group of worn and tired looking mercenaries appeared on the field, "Kickman, attack!" The Kick Man swung his new axe, slicing Iron Chain Snake down the middle. What happened next surprised everyone, especially Armstrong, who got shocked by the static generator.

* * *

Yanagi: "Hold on! The duel disk finally shocked him!"

Tanner: "Yeah! Looks like someone turned the power back on!"

* * *

**Yusei & Jason: 1600**

**Armstrong: 1800**

"Now, Exiled Force! Move in and slay that second serpent of his with a direct attack!" the rouged warriors charged.

"HOLD ON! WAIT! TIME OUT! THERE'S SOMETHING WRONG WITH MY…" but it was too late as the rouges sliced the snake into pieces, while Armstrong received another electric surge from his duel disk.

**Yusei & Jason: 1600**

**Armstrong: 1600**

"If I find out the person who turned my duel disk back on knows you, Satellites, they're gonna wish they never met you!" smoking like a roast, the Chief fell face-first on the floor.

"_CHIEF ARMSTRONG," _the Hive's master intercom called out, _"AN INTRUDER HAS BEEN CAUGHT AND RESTRAINED IN THE POWER GENERATOR ROOM. WE'RE BRINGING HIM TO YOU ASAP."_

"Now let's see who did this!" Armstrong growled. When he finally managed to pick himself up, he shook off any remains of fatigue and tried to pick the burnt hair from his nose, which whither away as soon as he did.

"Sir, here's the culprit. This was Yusei's cellmate," a guard saluted as they led the prisoner to the gantry.

"No! They caught Alex!" Yusei gasped. His cellmate had been beaten, that was clear from the light bruises on his skin. But Alex still smirked bravely as he looked on.

"How did this punk sneak out of his cell?" the Chief growled.

Another guard walked forward, "sir, he dug a hole, got to the power room and fried the mainframe."

"HE DID WHAT? Go fix it! My duel disk has been shocking me," Takasu whispered.

"Exactly," Alex said proudly, "and it's not going to stop."

"Wha—I SAID FIX IT!"

* * *

Guard: "I'm sorry, sir, but the mainframe can't be repaired! Which means the shocks that are running through your duel disk will continue for the remainder of the contest!"

* * *

"Grrrr…URRRRR! Soon as I'm done here, punk, you and I will have a nice, long conversation!"

"But first, your duel." Alex jollied, "and with the playing field evened up, I'd be 'shocked' to see you win." That made the Chief furious.

"Why'd you come back, Alex?"

"Well, I couldn't just leave you in here. I had to try and help you, Yusei. That's what friends do for each other. Just like you put your friends ahead of yourself, I wanted to do the same for you."

That's when Yusei came up with a proposition, "It's time we add to the stakes, Armstrong! Now that your duel disk is working once again, I say we battle it out for Alex: I win, you don't punish him. I lose, and he goes into lockdown like me and Jason!"

"Um, Yusei…"

"Sounds perfect! You're both screwed next turn anyway!" Armstrong barked, "Let Alex watch his future disappear!"

"So then let's keep going," Yusei continued, "I release Exiled Force to destroy Iron Chain Repairman!" the warriors disappeared along with the hammer-wielder, as well as the Soul Anchor trap card, "It's your move, Chief!"

* * *

Tanner: "This is it: one draw, one card. And if it a Level 4 monster, Yusei and Jason have to throw away all their cards."

Yanagi: "So, uh, what's so bad about that?"

Tanner: "What's bad about it is that without any cards to draw during Jason's next Draw Phase, they'll lose! Didn't you ever find a rulebook when you were traveling the world? Man, it's just like talking about this to my dad!"

Yanagi: "But you called me Gramps."

Tanner: "Never mind."

* * *

"HERE WE GO!" Takasu entered his draw phase, but he didn't draw a monster. "Well, well. Looks like you're okay. At least for now you are." 'But what they don't know is that I've been watching every move in this game since draw-1.' Armstrong glanced at the many cameras around the building, 'Thanks for these security cameras, their cards are as secret as a primetime line-up. And premiering tonight, are Jason's face-down cards. And I got a feeling, it's gonna be something of a tragedy.'

The Chief looked at the reverse cards, 'the face-down on the right side is Taunt: trap card they can't even use this turn. And on the left side, Battle Mania. Now that trap card could be trouble, since it forces our monsters to fight each other. And as long as their Kick Man is swinging that Axe of Despair, they got the upper hand. But with Battle Mania gone, I win! And I got just the card to get rid of it.'

"First I'll play the spell card, Pot of Greed," Armstrong drew twice, "and then I think I'll mix things up with my spell card Reload. Then I'll put my cards back into my deck, shuffle it up, and re-draw," Armstrong combined his last two with his deck and it automatically shuffled. When he drew again, he laughed as he found the card he needed, "I play Mystical Space Typhoon, which destroys any one spell or trap card on the field! I now I choose to destroy the face-down card on the left! Say goodbye!" Armstrong slapped the card onto his disk as a strong tornado of wind reached out and destroy the card, which is…

"What? It's not Battle Mania?"

"No, but the right one is! Check it out!" Jason revealed his final face-down, "So now our monsters have to attack, and that means we don't lose no more cards this round!"

* * *

Tanner: "They did it! Jason must've switched all his cards around when the blackout happened! Now Jason's Kick Man can win this!"

* * *

"What's going on?" Armstrong growled into his intercom, "This duel was supposed to be fixed so that I win!"

"_Don't worry, sir. We stacked your deck with the most advanced Iron Chain monsters available. Yusei's not the only one who knows how to duel with dragons!"_

The Chief cut off and gave the Satellite Duo a malice glare, 'Alright, Satellites, I didn't go through all this trouble to cheat just so you would win. Time to show you the rest of mu chain-gang!' "I summon out my (4) Iron Chain Coil(1100/1400).," A strange monster with a cone for legs, a sphere for both body and head appeared, its arms chains ending in gloves, large white eyes decorating its torso sphere. At that moment, Iron Chain Coil rose into the air and split into three glowing rings that encircled Iron Chain Blaster, reducing it to a framework that released three glowing stars. The stars aligned within the rings and became a jet of black aura that expanded to fill the Synchro Summon.

"And now I tune him with my blaster to Synchro Summon, (5) Iron Chain Dragon(2500/1300)!" Armstrong cackled as a dark blue dragon with a serpentine body burst from the Synchro Summon, great plates of black armour defending its head and spine. Stag-like horns rose from its head, and its only limbs were bat-like wings. Links of chain wrapped around its chest, and its tail, which ended in a feather-like flap of skin, lashed wildly at the air. It debuted with a threatening roar. "Here's where it gets fun: see for every Iron Chain monster I remove from my graveyard, my dragon can feed off their energy and gain 200 ATK points, and right now, I got five! So with an extra 1000 ATK points, I'm attacking you with my Iron Chain Dragon!" his dragon glowed a blue aura as it got stronger.

Iron Chain Dragon: (ATK: 3500)

"Trust me, Chief," Yusei said, "That's a bad idea."

"I know it is, for you!" Iron Chain Dragon breathed a helix of flames that incinerated Jason's Kick Man, and the Satellites cried out in pain as the flames hit them and they were shocked.

**Yusei & Jason: 400**

**Armstrong: 1600**

"Did I forget to mention that his special ability automatically activates? You see, for every time he inflicts battle damage, you both have to send 3 of your duel cards to the graveyard," more of Yusei and Jason's cards were discarded from their deck.

**Yusei's deck: (2)**

**Jason's deck: (4)**

"And with Paralyzing Chain's effect, you lose 300 life points!" more shocks were surged through the Satellite Duo, as they fell to the floor by fatigue.

**Yusei & Jason: 100**

**Armstrong: 1600

* * *

**

Alex: "YUSEI, NO!"

Tanner: "Their life points!"

Yanagi: "They're finished!"

* * *

"And that's not all; now I activate the spell card, (a)Destruction Chain!" Armstrong activated a spell card, which shows several rusty chains piercing a person's duel disk, "For every card I send to the graveyard, you have to discard one more card from your decks!" Iron Chain Dragon, Poison Chain and Paralyzing Chain disappeared from the field, and 2 more cards disappeared from the Satellites' decks.

**Yusei's deck: (0)**

**Jason's deck: (1)**

"It's my turn," Jason and Yusei struggled to rise up, with Jason's eyes covered by his bangs, drawing his last card.

**Yusei's deck: (0)**

**Jason's deck: (0)**

"Why don't you do society a favor and give up," Armstrong cracked, "You're down to 100 life points and your very last card! Your decks are empty _and_ you don't have a single face-down!"

"I know, but all we need to win is one card," Jason lifts his head up to reveal a determined look, "…and a little of your help!"

"_My_ help?"

"You spent the entire duel trying to send our cards to the graveyard," Yusei reviewed, "You thought our decks are worthless, just a mish-mash of cards given to us by your prisoners: our friends."

"And maybe, on their own, they wouldn't stand a chance against you supercharged chains, but together they will…with this!" Jason slid a card which was hidden behind another one in his hand, "We knew you would use the security cameras to spy on the cards in our hands once the match started; but I also knew you wouldn't see this…" Jason held up a card so Armstrong could see it. It was a monster card with a picture of a grotesque-looking king sitting on a stone chair, "It's called (1) Rubble King(0/0)! I hid it so your little surveillance friends couldn't big-brother it."

"So, as soon as you picked the wrong trap card to destroy, we just had to keep you sending our cards to the graveyard," Yusei finished.

"For what? To lose?"

"I'll show you after I summon him," with a battle cry, Jason slapped the card onto his disk and the Rubble King came to life on the field. It was a fiendish figure clad in purple robes, wearing a granite crown and sitting on a throne of jagged rock, "Now if there are at least 30 cards in our graveyard when Rubble King is summoned, like you so thoughtfully provided, I get to activate a trap card from my hand; it all comes down to this very last card!" Jason quickly took a card from his hand and placed it in the Spell/Trap Card zone, "I activate the trap: Blasting the Ruins! Since there are over 30 cards in our graveyard, you get blasted with 3000 points of damage!" all the cards that were discarded appeared on the field, and then they each transformed into a slab of stone.

"THREE-_WHAT_?"

And by command, the Rubble King led the raid of rocks to attack and charge at Armstrong, dealing 3000 points of damage and a supercharged shock from the static generator. When it all stopped, the images disappeared as the Chief fell to the floor with his cap falling off, smoking like a roast.

**Yusei & Jason: 100**

**Armstrong: 0**

Jason grinned a made a peace sign, "Now, how do you want yourself, Chief: medium-rare or well-done?" he joked.

* * *

Yanagi: "They won!"

Tanner: "Never a doubt!"

* * *

("They did it! They took down the Chief with all of our cards!")

The prisoners cheered for the Satellite Duo's victory, screaming and chanting their names.

But their celebration was short lived as Armstrong barely got up, with a peeved look on his face, "PUT THEM ALL, _IN A LOCKDOWN!_"

Yusei: "What?"

Alex: "But what about our deal?"

"We don't have no deal!" Armstrong growled, "Take them all away now!"

"I don't think so, Mr. Armstrong," every one looked up to one of the upper walkways, and standing there is none other that Director Rex Goodwin, with a irascible look of his own," "I saw the entire duel; and the only person going away is you, I'm afraid," he said calmly, "I don't see how The Facility could run effectively if no trust exists between the guards and the inmates. Pack your things, Armstrong. You're fired!"

Yusei and Jason glared at Goodwin as he walked away…

* * *

**The next afternoon…**

The Satellite Duo was standing in the room where he had first dueled Bolt Tanner, with Tanner, Yanagi and Alex gathered around him.

"So what now, guys? You're free to go," Tanner asked Yusei and Jason.

"Something's weird," Alex wondered out loud, "Why did Goodwin show up just then? It seems funny."

"Oh, be quiet," Yanagi said, "Thanks to Goodwin, we're all getting out of here soon, too."

"I know, and that's why this whole situation just seems strange: Yusei and Jason win, and now we're all gonna be free? You just make sure you watch your back, guys."

"Maybe he's right," Yanagi rustled through his robes and took out two cards, "So please, take these gifts."

"Wow, thanks," Jason was about to reach fro them, but then Yusei grabbed his wrist.

"We don't have to take charity, Jason."

"But Yusei, this guy's real nice to give those away. And besides, they could come in ha—"

"No charities," Yusei repeated, "We can't take you cards, Yanagi."

"Yes you can. I figured you would have more use for those cards than I ever will," the old man gave Yusei the Totem Pole trap card, which leaves Jason with the Curse Reflection Doll spell card.

Yusei nodded, "…this is incredible, thank you!"

"Hold on, I got something for you guys, as well," Tanner handed Yusei his Giant Ushi Oni card, "This card will help you get your runners back I overheard the guards talking about your sweet rides, and how they're locked up at the Impound Center. Now, take this to a bar named 'Bootleg', order some milk, and ask for the 'Jack's Flush'. They'll help you out."

* * *

**At the Security Headquarters…**

"Are you sure about this? " Lazar asks, "If you let them go, we may never find them again."

Goodwin walks to the window of his office, revealing the security monitoring room, "It's obvious to me that neither Mark of the Dragon will reappear as long as the Satellites are walls of The Facility. It's time for a change of scenery," he turns his eyes back to Lazar, "Besides; I never said we were letting them go."

"You're going to track them?" Lazar chuckled, "Oh, you are so sneaky!"

Goodwin turns back to the window, "With Yusei Fudo and Jason Hutchins free to roam New Domino City, I have selected an elite task force to keep them under surveillance, and watch for any signs of their marks reappearing. Now, as long as no one interferes in our affairs, all we need to do is watch, and wait."

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

As the two Satellites walked through the Facility gates and out into the city, they were on there way to the bar, but they were being watched.

Two figures were standing on an incline above them, mounted on their duel runners, watching Yusei and Jason like hawks. They were Officers Ushio Trudge and Justine Altman.

"Hello again, Yusei," Trudge took of his helmet, his left cheek revealing a long scar. Altman removed her helmet as well, freeing her blonde (and now short) hair.

"I heard about the little task force Goodwin put together, Hutchins," she growled, "You better hope they get to you before I do!"

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) ****Rubble King**

**Stats:** [Rock/Effect] Level 1 ATK/0 DEF/0

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:** Once per turn, while you have 30 or more cards in your Graveyard, you can activate 1 Trap Card from your hand.

**(2)**** Exiled Force**

**Stats:** [Warrior/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1000 DEF/1000

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:** You can Tribute this card to destroy 1 monster on the field.

**(3) ****Iron Chain Blaster**

**Stats:** [Warrior/Effect] LV2 ATK/1100 DEF/ 0

**Attribute:** Earth  
**Description:** Once per turn, you can send 1 "Iron Chain" monster you control to the Graveyard to inflict 800 damage to your opponent.

**(4) ****Iron Chain Coil**

**Stats:** [Machine/Tuner] LV3 ATK/1100 DEF/1600

**Attribute:** Earth  
**Description:** Once per turn you can select 1 "Iron Chain" monster you control. It gains 300 ATK and DEF.

**(5) ****Iron Chain Dragon**

**Stats:** [Dragon/Synchro/Effect] LV6 ATK/2500 DEF/1300

**Attribute:** Earth  
**Synchro Requirements:** 1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters

**Description: **You can remove from play all "Iron Chain" monsters from your Graveyard to have this card gain 200 ATK for each card removed, until the End Phase. When this card inflicts Battle Damage to your opponent send the top 3 cards of your opponent's Deck to the Graveyard.

* * *

**Jack: Let's say we kick this Jukebox into overdrive!**

Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D is here this time they play for keeps.

High speed Turbo Duels high-octane is the city rule.

Yusei's gotta speed if he's gonna win.

Yu - Gi - Oh - 5D.

Pick up the speed you know the

**Secret** of **five** is what we need to find to survive .

And now is the time for

Yu - Gi - Oh - 5D

Speeding side by side.

Better wait to make your move.

What ya gonna do when the future's up to you.

You Duel!

Pick up the speed you know the

**Secret** of **five** is what we need to find to survive.

Yu - Gi - Oh - 5Ds

The **secret** of **Five** Dragons

Yu - Gi - Oh - 5Ds!

* * *

**Jason: Now let's look what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5Ds:**

**?: You don't find the Jacks; the Jacks find you.**

**Yusei: Are you the Jack's Flush?**

**? : In the flesh. Name's Blister.**

**Yusei: We need to sneak into the Security Impound Center to get our duel runners back.**

**Trudge: Actually, those runners are now the property of Sector Security.**

**Next time on Stardust Accelerator: The Take-Back**

**Trudge: There's no hatch to wiggle through this time, you sewer rat!**

**Please review.**

**(a) Destruction Chain is a quick-play spell card I created at the last minute. All credit goes to me.

* * *

**

**(A/N) Next time, I'm introducing a new OC character, including one i've made up on my own. i hope you're reading this, GammaTron.  
**


	18. The TakeBack: Part 1

Same disclaimer applied; I do not own YuGiOh or the characters, except for my OCs; Rico Burst belongs to GammaTron, so all creative rights go to him.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

_Flashback_

_Distant Communication_

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

In the dark corners of the alley, two mysterious people stuck to the cold brick walls to enhance their stealth. They each wore a black suit-and-tie, and black shades. One of them took out a walkie-talkie, which he spoke through, "Wolf Gang, this is Fox Trout. Targets are on-foot and heading your way."

Wolf Gang: "Trap Line, they're heading your way."

Trap Line: "Roger that; got the eyeballs."

Fox Trout: "Follow on foot, Trap Line. Do not lose visual contact."

Under the pre-dusked sky, Yusei and Jason walked across the streets of New Domino City, its florescent lights of the streets overwhelming the faint glow of the sky.

'I hope your card works, Tanner.' Yusei thought.

_**Flashback…**_

_"Hold on, I got something for you guys, as well," Tanner handed Yusei his Giant Ushi Oni card, "This card will help you get your runners back I overheard the guards talking about your sweet rides, and how they're locked up at the Impound Center. Now, take this to a bar named 'Bootleg', order some milk, and ask for the 'Jack's Flush'. They'll help you out."_

…_**End Flashback.**_

Yusei was suddenly snapped out of thought as he and Jason spotted a person dashing towards him, and it seems he was clutching a woman's purse in his arms. As soon as the mugger was right beside them, (a) Jason grabbed the man's wrist, and with a swift move, he pulled it back, and twisted the arm counterclockwise, literally flipping over the purse-snatcher, sending him hard onto the sidewalk.

"Wow! I never knew you could do that," Yusei commented.

"Me nether," Jason wondered.

And that was when Jason saw two people hustling towards him and Yusei. They apparently were a young woman with a little girl hand-in-hand. After taking one more look at the mugger. He knew the purse was actually hers. So he took the bag from his clutches, walked over to them, and presented it to them. "Here's your purse, Miss Lady," he grinned.

Now that he was closer, he could get a good profile of the two: the woman had long, dark-green hair that stopped half-way down her back, and her eyes were a bright topaz. She wore a yellow and white waitress outfit.

The girl she was holding onto looked young enough to still be in grade-school. She has shorter, raven-black hair, and bright-emerald eyes. What was peculiar (to say the least) was her outfit: though she wears a traditional Japanese school uniform, she also sports a pair of white cat-ears and has a pair of oversized paw-like gloves fitted in her hands.

Since the woman glanced at Jason's marker, she was hesitant but retrieved her purse, "Ummm… thank you," she said nervously. With her bag returned to her, she and the girl turned and walked away.

"Distractions aside," Yusei placed a hand on Jason's shoulder, "let's get going; we still have to go to the Damon Area. Jason nodded and let Yusei lead then to the bar.

'Okay, Tanner,' Yusei though again, 'let's see what this friend of yours can do about helping me get my runner back.'

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 15: The Take-Back**

**Part 1: Broken Bonds and The Great Escape

* * *

**

As the sky grows dimmer, the Satellite Duo strolled through the New Domino streets, at ease entering the Daimon Area, famous for being home to just about anyone with a marker on their face and a criminal record in the books. Dirty, vandalized and graffiti coated buildings were the norm. Around them, few criminals with yellow markers on their faces were slumped on the walls, either drunk or asleep.

No one was paying attention to the duo, except for a couple of men in suits, who were lurking at the corner of the alley. _"Hang back, Fox Trout; let's see what they're up to."_

The Satellites walked until they stopped to an entrance on one of the buildings. The sign above titled 'Bootleg'.

"This must be the place Bolt Tanner was talking about," Jason said.

"Seems like my kind of joint," Yusei complimented, "I just hope these 'Jack's Flush' come through for us." The inside was smoky and dark, smelling strongly of cigarettes and alcohol. Currently only a few patrons were inside the bar, drinking various alcoholic beverages. However, both young men didn't pay any attention to these people, instead moving straight to the bar.

The bartender behind it was a tall fellow of about 25. He had a yellow scratch on his face, his criminal marker, and an elfish face. He had black spiky hair and a green vest. When he took a first look at the two, he knew something was where it doesn't belong.

"So whadda' ya' want here, kids? Lose your puppy or something?" he sneered, "My heart's breaking for ya, but this ain't the animal shelter. Now get outta here! We got a 'No Loitering' rule; paying customers only!"

"In that case, we'll have some milk," Yusei took out Tanner's card and presented it to the bartender, who gasped, "Bolt Tanner gave this to me. We're looking for the Jack's Flush."

The bartender fiddled under the bar and fixed two glasses of milk, "Those suits that have followed ya' looking for the Jacks, too?" the duo wondered what he was talking about, until he gestured to two suit and sunglasses men at the back of the bar, both of whom had their eyes fixed on Jason and Yusei. The Satellites looked behind them, but not enough to be noticed. When the guards realized they were onto them, they turned away.

"I assume those guys, uh, aren't with you. Now y'all kids get out of here," the bartender gave a serious-looking stare, "You don't find the Jacks; the Jacks find you."

The Satellites quickly downed their drinks and left with Tanner's card in tow, "Thanks."

As soon as they left the building, the suits tailed them, but enough so they wouldn't be spotted. As Jason and Yusei walked further in the dusk-dimmed streets, they could here the sound of a started duel runner from above. They looked up to see a runner flying off a building in their direction. It was coming so closely at them that Jason scampered out of the way while Yusei stood in place, even with the back wheel inches above his head. When the duel runner landed it skied to a halt.

"Looking for me?" the pilot of the dark-green duel runner wore a dark green vest over a white shirt and dark jeans. Anyone who doesn't know better would definitely think it was Jim Cooks.

When they realized they were going to lose them, they came out of hiding and chased after them, "Quick! Don't let them get away!"

When the Satellites spotted the men-in-blacks, another duel runner came out of nowhere; this one was night-black. The wheeler dashed towards the suits and knocked them to the ground with the back wheel of the runner.

"Need a lift?" the green runner shot past Yusei, its rider grabbing him with ease and pulling him onto the back side of the runner baby-tantrum-style. The second runner din the same thing, only Jason was pulled bridal-style in front.

When the suits regained conscious, they found the two wheelers escaping down the street with their tow captives, "Who were they?"

"Check the Nava-Link. Can you track their signals?"

One of the suits pulled out a small tracking device and looked at the monitor, "Yeah, we got 'em. They're going north on—" but suddenly, the two blips disappeared, "c'mon!"

"What? What's going on?"

"Tell Wolf Gang we lost visual and radar!" the other suit took out a phone and did just that.

Meanwhile, Jason was being flashed on by small rod-like gadget. His marker was reacting to its light.

"Even this little thing is enough to stop those guys from tracking you," the wheeler's voice can be described as feminine and seductive.

"Are you guys…"

"Yep, We're The Jack's Flush! Persian, at your service!" the woman saluted.

Yusei's marker was treated the same way, "Hold still," the man on the runner said as he looked straight at the road, "The ions in this little bad-boy are jamming the marker's signal. We can't have those snitches following us."

"Are you The Jack's Flush?"

The man turned to Yusei, "In the flesh; name's Blister."

* * *

**Later…**

Eventually the green and black duel runners stopped outside what looked like an abandoned office building and their riders dismounted, helping Yusei and Jason off of the runners. Both duel runners were quickly wheeled into a garage built into the office building before Yusei, Jason and the mysterious D-wheelers walked up a flight of stairs into an untidy apartment, with a few laptop computers and desktop monitors on a desk, several photographs on display on the walls, and several sofas with blankets slung over them.

The D-wheelers pulled off their helmet and tossed them onto a sofa, one had cheeks dark with stubble, mouth set into a grimace, and his hair dark brown. The other one was a woman who looked just in her early 20's. Her long, lavender hair flowed behind her. Her piercing green eyes were barely visible in the darkness. Without question, or any reason at all, she turned around and walked out the door.

Outside there were a group of helicopters with spotlights, looking as if they were searching for some hardened criminal. "Sector Security usually save the helicopters for the big-time offenders. But you guys seem harmless enough," Blister sat in a chair and started tapping on a keyboard, "You know something about a city-hauled fat-cat you're not supposed to know?"

"Actually, I think someone knows something about us," Yusei answered, referring to him and Jason, "but… I don't know what."

"Well, your markers won't transmit for a few hours, and I cloaked this building; you're good for now. So Bolt Tanner told you to come here and find The Jack's Flush, did he?"

"That's right."

"I don't suppose he sent you to pay back the chunk of change he owes me."

"Fraid not."

"In that case, you two must be here for the Official Blister Hook-Up. So, what's the deal? Need new identities?"

"We need to sneak into the Security Impound Center to get our duel runners back."

Not believing what he just heard, he quickly turned to the Satellite Duo over his chair, "You're kidding, right?"

"Tanner said you could help us, so was he right or wrong?"

"…he's right!"

**Later…**

"Alright Mr. 'Adams' and Mr…, uh, Adams, your maintenance uniforms are set, and I got your ID cards ordered. I just need to hack into the city's system…" as the night goes by, Blister was setting up Yusei and Jason for tomorrow's 'exhibition'. As Blister worked, Jason and Yusei spent their time looking at the room. Yusei was first to notice a photograph.

It depicted a younger Blister standing beside a blonde-haired man with brown eyes, wearing a blue riding suit. Both were lifting a trophy in the air, their expressions triumphant. "…and, done; Yusei and Jason Adams, you're officially an employee of the New Domino City Security Impound Center! Now, each door requires a sight-specific code. Let me hop onto the mainframe and see where they're keeping your rides so I'll know what code you'll need. When did they take them?"

"A couple of weeks ago, Blister."

"Alright then, I'll have to break the encryption…" Under the photo frame was a card, and out of curiosity Jason pulled it out to look at it. The card was badly burned and torn; it was Machina Sniper, "…Booyah! I'm in! Just gotta narrow down the search to single-ride duel runners, confiscated over the past several weeks, among that in a list of other variables… and, bingo! Vault 64-B, top floor." Blister skied to the next computer nearby, "Now I just need to snag the passcode you'll need to get in. this shouldn't be too hard."

"Blister," Yusei held up the pictureframe, "did you used to be a duelist?"

"Hmmm? Wha--?" Blister jumped up from his chair, "What are you two doing snooping around in here? Put that picture back!"

"Looks like you were taking names in the big leagues."

"Nah, I was never big-leagued, that's for sure. Me and my partner used to duel in the Semi-Pro-League for a bit. But… that was a different life, Yusei. It was a long time ago. Put the picture down," Blister sat back on his chair, "We gotta focus here!" Yusei returned the picture and Jason returned the card.

"Talk to me," Yusei walked to Blister.

"I got the passcode for 64-B."

"Is that all we'll need?"

"That, the ID cards, your uniforms, and a whole lot of luck. The Security Droids are on a random programming, so I can't help you there."

"We'll risk it," Jason assured, "So, is that your tag-partner with you in the picture?"

"Man!" Blister back to the other computer, "You guys don't know when to let something go, do you? We're not here to know each other, got it?"

**Meanwhile…**

Deep beneath the shadows of the Damon area, the actions of Blister and the Satellites were not gone unnoticed. Hidden against the walls of the alleyway, was Sector Security officers Trudge and Altman.

"Hmm, I-spy someone who thinks they've got away," Trudge sneered, "But no one gets away from me. I'll show Yusei and that no-good Goodwin!"

_**Flashback…**_

_At headquarter, Trudge and Altman briefed their last confrontation with Yusei and Jason, and the Captain was none too happy. "I said there are no third chances with the Director. You're both on mall patrol!"_

_Trudge slams his fist onto the captain's desk, "Goodwin is up to something here, Chief! First he has us shaking down the Satellites, then he lets them walk free in Domino?"_

"_We're gonna catch those kids and get to the bottom of this!" without anything else to say, both coppers dashed out the room._

"_Trudge, Altman, wait!" but it was too late as they disappeared through the exit._

…_**End Flashback.**_

Trudge became so giddy he couldn't contain his excitement. Soon, he cackled in the late-night, "And once you tell me what I want to know, Yusei, it's back to The Facility forever!"

**The next morning…**

Yusei and Jason were fast asleep in Blister's office, leaning on the chairs with its front legs in the air.

"Rise and shine, guys," they woke up to the sound of Blister dumping a giant red mesh bag onto the table. Unfortunately, Jason lost his balance and tripped over with his legs sticking out.

"Everything you'll need tonight is in the bag. You'll get your IDs from a guy named (b) Fisher downstairs on the way out. Also, tell Tanner I'm putting this on his tab."

"Will do," Yusei reached for the bag, but Blister pulled the strap away.

"Look, man. I did everything I could, but the odds are still against you."

"Only people who have a choice worry about odds. I have to get my runner back if I'm gonna get my friends out of the satellite."

"Wait, what? Ha! You're taking this huge risk fro some friends?" while Jason picked himself up off the floor, Yusei glanced at the photograph he had seen the night before. Blister sighed in defeat, knowing Yusei wanted some answers, "His name's Aero. We were best buds. You'd notice, of course, when I said were. People come and go, Yusei. You make friends, you lose friends: that's how it goes. But trust me: at the end of the day, you'd realize you shouldn't bother with 'friends', because the only thing a 'friend' is good for is… finding the best way to let you down. You're better off looking out for Number-1. I mean, that's what everyone else does, isn't it? We were on a practice run… we lost control of the bike… the connecting cables tore apart… we were going to slam into a building. I didn't have time to think. I just turned away."

"He was stuck in the side-car. He had no control. It was bad. He spent eight months in recovery…" Blister fought back coming tears from the mere images of the past that invaded his mind. He walked over to the picture and picked up the card from under it, "When he got out, he quit dueling. I've never heard from him again, except for this card he sent me. It was his part of our best combo. It's all torn and burnt. I'm pretty sure it was his way of saying he would never forgive me. Hmph, not that I blame him. I wouldn't forgive me either, if I was him. Don't take this risk for your friends, Yusei. 'Cause come crunch-time, they're gonna let you down," he turned to face Yusei, "I mean, look at me. I let my best friend crash right into a building just to save myself."

Yusei just remained silent and grabbed the bag, with Jason following, "Try not to be so hard on yourself, Blister, and thanks for all your help," with that, they closed the door and left.

"I don't care what he says about friendship," Yusei said to Jason, "Friends are the most important thing a person could have. Without them, you're nothing."

But when they went down the stairs, all they found were nothing. The hallways were bare and without life.

"Hey, Yusei, where is that 'Fishy' guy?"

"The name's Fisher," The two Satellites jumped as they quickly turned to see a group of people sitting on the same stairway they went down from. One person in particular sitting on a table was a boy about 14-15 years old with curly brown hair. He wears an open brown short-sleeved shirt over a red hooded sweater, "I take it you're the guys blister ordered for."

"That's us."

One of Fisher friends took two small ID cards from the guitar case he was holding and gave it to Fisher. Yusei and Jason reached for them, but the boy pulled them out of reach, "Supposed I do this for you, what's in it for me?"

Yusei and Jason looked at each other, and then looked back at Fisher, "Well, what do you want?" Jason asked.

"How about a diorama for my school's science fair next week?"

Yusei and Jason looked at each other again, and then looked back at Fisher, "Can it be on Engineering?" Yusei asked.

"Deal," Fisher then gave the cards to the Satellites.

"Thanks," Jason said.

"Yeah, now look over there," Fisher pointed behind Yusei and Jason, and they turned to see Persian, who waved at them. When they turned back, they were in for quite a shock when they saw… nothing! There was no longer sign of Fisher, or his friends, or the table."

"Okay, that was sort of… freaky."

* * *

**Later…**

The Satellite Duo entered the Impound center, with patches on their faces to hide their markers. The job they were assigned to by Blister was basically to be a couple of custodians. So the spent all day doing 'custodian' stuff, until later that afternoon…

"Hey, Jason, where are you going?"

"Outside; I'm on break."

"Okay," Yusei went back to mopping.

Jason went out the door and walked across the sidewalk, thinking about what Yusei said before…

_**Flashback…**_

_Yusei: "I don't care what he says about friendship. Friends are the most important thing a person could have. Without them, you're nothing."_

…_**End Flashback.**_

'Yusei is doing this for his friends,' Jason thought, 'but…what about me?' as Jason walked passed the center, he spotted a large basketball court and he decided that he could spend his break there. When he got on the court, he realized the court was empty; except a small child sitting in the far corner.

When Jason got closer, he saw that it was a boy about 10-11 years old. He had short brown hair, with a bang covering his right eye. He was wearing a brown hooded vest over a white shirt, and matching pants with gold trimmings on them. He had something stuck out of his mouth and he was looking over a set of small boxes.

"Um… hi there, what are you doing?"

The boy took out the lollipop that was in his mouth, "Huh? You wanna know what I'm doing? I'm researching Structure Decks."

"Structure Decks?"

"They're decks that are fixed so they focus on different strategies. They're sold at the card shop all the time. Of course, you already knew that." He held up one of the boxes, "I know! How about we have a duel! We'll use nothing but the Structure Decks!"

Jason thought it was a great idea, since he doesn't have his own deck at the time, "Sound's great! So, what do I do?"

"It's easy: we each pick out which structure deck to duel with. I always carry an extra duel disk with me, so don't worry if you forgot yours."

The boy laid out the Structure Deck boxes. There were many different colors and many different decks to choose from. After a few moments, Jason decides on choosing a platinum-white box titled, '2037 Starter Deck'.

"That deck came out last year! I'm gonna use the new one!" the boy held out a cobalt-blue box titled, 'Machina Mayhem'. Soon enough, both duelists stood on either side of the court. Jason was given a golden duel disk with red gems on it, while the boy had a cobalt-blue disk with red lining on the edge of the card platform. Both duel disks converted to duel-mode.

"LET'S GO!"

**Jason: 4000**

**Boy: 4000**

"Here goes," the boy started and drew his sixth card, "I'll start by playing the continuous spell card, Machina Armored Unit!" a spell card stood in front of him, "Whenever a machine-type monster gets destroyed, I can special summon another machine from my deck, as long as it has the same attribute and less attack. Now I'll summon (1) Machina Soldier(1600/1500) in attack mode!" A green robot with a sword on its right arm where its hand would normally be appeared on the field. "And when Machina Soldier is the only monster on the field when it's summoned, its special ability lets me summon another monster with 'Machina' in its name, so I think I'll summon (2) Machina Sniper(1800/800)!" A robot, colored a lighter shade of green than the soldier and holding a large sniper rifle in its right hand, appeared on the field. "Then I'll set 2 cards face-down, and end my turn." Two reverse cards appeared beside the boy's spell card.

"Alright," Jason drew, "First I'll play the spell, Double summon, which lets me normal summon an extra monster during this turn. Next up, I summon the (3) Dark Blade(1800/1500) in attack mode," a knight appeared with sinister black armor and wielding two swords, "and then I'll summon the (4) Water Spirit(400/1200) tuner monster," the Water Spirit looked like a plump blue and white slug. It shivered uncontrollably as soon as it was summoned, "Next, I'll equip Dark Blade with the Synchro Boost spell card, which gives him an extra level and 500 ATK points," the warrior glowed with a fierce red aura.

Dark Blade: (ATK: 2300/ Lv: 5)

"Water Spirit, time to give Dark Blade a tune-up!" the slug transformed into a synchro-gate and the warrior separated into five stars as Jason chanted:

"Divested stars form a gallant hero! Become the steed that will be the guide on his forgotten journey! Synchro Summon! Gaia Knight, (5) The Force of Earth(2600/800), Accelerate!"

The monster Jason summoned was similar to Gaia the Fierce Knight, except to was mechanical in appearance, "Alright Gaia, attack Machina Soldier with Steele Spiral Strike!" the mechanical horse neighed as is galloped to across the court, with its master's javelins at the ready. But as soon as the attacks were about to connect, the other machine stood in front of its companion, taking the attack instead. The sniper exploded.

**Jason: 4000**

**Boy: 3200**

"Sorry, but as soon as you attacked, the ability of my Machina Sniper gets activated, which means you couldn't attack any other Machina except for Machina Sniper," the boy said, "and now I can activate my Time Machine trap card!" one of the boys face-downs were revealed, and a giant raw-iron chamber appeared, "this lets me bring back a monster that was destroyed by battle this turn, and I choose my Machina Sniper!" the mechanical marksman walked out of the chamber and the Time Machine disappeared, "and since a machine on my field was destroyed, I get to summon another one from my deck using Machina Armored Unit. And I choose to summon my (6) Machina Defender(1200/1800) in DEF mode!" the boy's spell card glowed, and a blue robot appeared with cannons on each side.

"I guess I'll end my turn for now."

"Then I guess it's my turn," the boy drew his card and grinned, "I summon the (7) Commander Covington(1000/600)!" A red robot with what looked like a white tie on its chest appeared on the field, side-by-side from Machina Soldier, Machina Sniper, and Machina Defender, "This is the part I enjoyed the most with this deck: when Covington is on the field, its special ability can unite Machinas Soldier, Sniper and Defender and combine them into one!"

"Combine?"

"That's right! And now's a perfect time to activate Commander Covington's Mechanization!" Covington raised its arms over its head and the three Machina jumped in the air and dismembered themselves. And the body parts from all three robots combined to form a large mecha with blue cannons, a sword behind its right leg, and a sniper rifle in its hands. "I summoned the most powerful machine monster in Duel monsters: the (8) Machina Force(4600/4100)!" the giant robot landed on the ground, with its heavy body density causing the ground to shake.

Jason was astonished, "A monster like that has 4600 ATK points?"

"That's right! But it also has a huge drawback. See, whenever I want to attack with Machina Force, I have to pay 1000 life points as well. But that's a price I'm willing to pay…"

**Jason: 4000**

**Boy: 2200**

The boy pointed at Jason's Gaia Knight, "Because now I attack Gaia Knight with Machina Force! Go, Machina Mayhem!" the mecha hummed as its cannons charged with energy. And then, the fired a twin array of blue light that obliterated Jason's knight, and half of his life points.

**Jason: 2000**

**Boy: 2200**

"And now that you have no monsters on the field, commander Covington can attack you directly!" Jason cringed as the smaller robot punched him in the chest.

**Jason: 1000**

**Boy: 2200**

"It's your move."

"Okay," Jason drew, "I summon (9) Copycat(0/0) in attack mode," a person with a jester-based appearance appeared. Its face was hidden by a mirror it was holding, "and its special ability copies its ATK and DEF power from any monster out, so I'm going to choose your Machina Force to match Copycat head-to-head," Copycat fixed its mirror to reflect on the giant robot, its scrawny body buffing up, surrounded by a yellow aura.

Copycat: (ATK: 4600/DEF: 4100)

"Copycat, attack Commander Covington!" the jester jogger towards the two robots, ready to destroy the smaller one.

"I activate the Dimensional Prison trap card!" the boy revealed his reverse card, and an instant rip in the time/space continuum had sucked the Copycat right in before disappearing, "when a monster attacks, this trap can remove the attacking monster from play before it can even finish!"

"I'll just set a face-down and that's it," a reverse card appeared on Jason's field.

"It's my turn, then," the boy called, "This is it! By discarding The Big Saturn from my hand, I can special summon the head-liner of the Machina Mayhem structure deck!" after sending a card into his graveyard slot, the boy placed a card in his monster card zone. Then, in a flash of blue light, a giant tank-like mecha appeared. It had blue armor with large arms coming from the back of the giant trends it was mobilized by. It also mounts a long-barrel cannon on its back.

"What is that?" Jason exclaimed.

"This is the powerful (10) Machina Fortress(2500/1600)! And it can be special summoned from my hand or graveyard by discarding a Level 8 or higher machine-type monster from my hand! Now that you have no monsters to defend you, it's time to end it! Machina's Fortress, attack!"

**Jason: 1000**

**Boy: 1200**

"I activate the Threatening Roar trap card!" massive soundwaves rippled across the field as Jason's revealed card halted the robot's assault.

"That's the only card in that deck that can stop all my monsters at once." The boy said, "I know every strategy that's planted in those Structure Decks, so your next turn will be your last."

Jason drew his next card and smiled, "You're right, that is my last turn, because now, by paying 800 life points, I can activate the Premature Burial equip spell and bring back Gaia Knight!" Jason glowed an ominous blue aura as his metallic knight returned.

**Jason: 200**

**Boy: 1200**

"Uh-oh!"

"But that's not all. I'm also summoning the tuner monster, (11) Magma Drago(1400/600)!" another monster appeared next to the knight. It was a ferocious dragon with blood-red scales, "And now I got just what I need to create one more synchro summon!" the dragon transformed into two synchro-gates and the knight separated into six stars as Jason chanted:

"Divested stars form a timid soul, discovered in the darkest reaches! Unlock the gates to remove the shadows, and create the titan it will become, on its long-forgotten journey! Synchro Summon!"

When the light tunnel finally dimmed out, a new monster appeared, "(12) Colossal Fighter(2800/1000), ACCELERATE!" There was a loud rumble as a giant golden robot burst out of the ground and then punched it. "When Colossal Fighter is on the field, he gains 100 ATK points for each warrior-type monster in the graveyard, and right now there's two," silhouettes of both monsters appeared as Colossal Fighter increased in power.

Colossal Fighter: (ATK: 3000)

"Colossal Fighter, end this!" the titan dashed with incredible speed towards Commander Covington, "Go, Colossus Comet!" his fist ran right through the small robot as it shattered into pixels. The force was so great that it pushed the boy off his feet.

**Jason: 200**

**Boy: 0**

The images faded as Jason walked to the boy, to see if he's alright. But when he approached him, he saw something he didn't expect at all from a child: surrounding his right eye was yellow marks snaking around from the top side of his eye to the bottom. He was wearing a criminal mark!

When the boy came to, he realized that his mark was no longer covered, so he quickly sat up and covered his eye, "I guess you were wondering how I got this," he chuckled nervously, "See, here's the thing, I was…"

"Don't worry," Jason said, "I won't hold that marker against you. Just because you have it doesn't mean you're a hard criminal like the others."

"…that's right, but how did you know?"

"Because it takes one to know one,"

Jason removed his patch from over his eye and revealed his own marker. The boy gasped, "So you…"

"Yeah, I got a marker just like yours. But tell me, how did you get yours?"

"…I rather not explain the details, but the bottom line is that I tried to run out of a restaurant without paying the food I ordered. That was over 4 years ago."

"Oh, well why did you do it?"

"I was on the streets before I was taken in, and I was hungry. If it wasn't for Sayer and Divine, I probably would've been in The Facility then."

"Sayer? Divine?"

"They're the leaders of the Arcadia Movement, a group whom I'm living with."

"What does the Arcadia Movement do anyway?"

"It's kind of like an orphanage, where the take care of people with special gifts, like me."

"What kind of gift do you have?"

The boy looked down, "Sorry, but I can't tell you. And even if I did, you probably won't believe me," he stood up and packed up his cards and boxes, "I have to go back soon, but I had a great duel! Hope I'll see you again!"

"Me too; By the way, my name's Jason. What's yours?"

"The name's Rico Burst," the boy named Rico Burst unwrapped a red sucker and popped it into his mouth, "but you can just call me Rico."

"Then I hope we can meet again soon, Rico," Jason removed this duel disked and took out the cards, "Here's you disk cards back."

"You can keep them; I already studied throughout that deck, and I always have my own with me. Besides, I already have my own deck I customized for my self. Okay then, bye!"

Jason watched as Rico ran off the court. As soon a he was out of sight, Jason looked at the time on a nearby billboard, "Yusei was right: time does fly by while dueling. I gotta get back to the center," with out saying another word, Jason dashed back to the building.

* * *

**Later…**

Dusk had come once again. All the employees at the Impound Center have left. All the doors and entrances were locked and sealed. It was void of human life, except for 2 people.

Yusei and Jason emerged from the men's toilets within the centre to a dark building. The power had been turned off for the night shift, with a few small robots rolling across the hallways, "Blister wasn't lying about those security droids." Jason whispered.

"Time to move," Yusei said, "Top floor, here we come."

They moved briskly through the building until they came to a giant steel door, "This is it. Now I just hope this ID and passcode work, "Yusei slid his card through the lock and typed in the code. The doors then open to a giant room filled with metal crates, "Nice."

He was holding a tracker with him while he and Jason walked for a few minutes across the area, until the device locked onto their runner's location, "There we go, reunited at last."

"Good, now let's just get our runners and get out of here--" but before Jason can get to the crate, spotlights burst into life. Three Sector Security officers leapt down from nearby crates, and Trudge and Altman appeared on top of one.

"I'm starting to think you like me, Hutchins," Justine chuckled, "Why else would you constantly go out of your way to make sure we keep meeting up like this? Although I gotta say, this is probably your craziest stunt yet! What on earth were you boys thinking?"

"We just want our duel runners back, Altman. They are ours!" Yusei barked.

"Actually, those runners are now the property of Sector Security," Trudge sneered, "They're gonna become a pair of new patrol bikes, or maybe they'll scrap 'em and turn 'em into a bunch of toasters! I'm not really sure. As for you two, it's back to The Facility. Get 'em, boys!"

Many officers chase after the Satellite Duo as they climbed into the giant crate.

"Sorry, Yusei," Trudge and Altman jumped off the crates and walked up to the one Yusei and Jason were hiding in, "but those runners are offline, so just come on out quietly," suddenly, a sound of engines roared out in the room, "What is that?" it was then they realized it was the sound of their runners that were causing it.

"Offline? Please!"

"Now move over, or get run over!"

The two S.S. officers ducked as the red and white duel runners burst from the crate and shot out along the passageway cleared between the rows of crates.

"You have asked for it!" Altman cursed as she and Trudge quickly got up.

Just before the doors closed, the Satellites exited the room, but not before…

"SURPRISE!" Justine's duel runner smashed through Jason's as it skied across the wall, Trudge followed after her, "C'mon, Hutchins, do you really think you can escape from me again? I'll never stop chasing you, don't you get that?"

"Chase this!" Jason revved his runner to escape Altman.

"So that's how you wanna play things, is it? I'll tell you what, I'll make you a deal: give yourselves up right now, and I'll forget the fact you broke into the vault while I'm filling out the report!"

"No chance!"

"You're not leaving any choice here!" Trudge said, "If you won't surrender, we'll have to make you surrender, with a duel!" He pressed a button on his Runner's console and Speed World flashed into being on all the runners' console screens.

"_TAG FORCE ENGAGED; AUTO-PILOT STANDING BY!"_

"_OVERIDING SUSPECTS' DUEL RUNNERS; AUTO-PILOT, ENGAGED!"_

"Yusei, it looks like the guards mixed up our decks when they put them in storage," Jason informed.

"We'll just need to buy time while I load up the building schematics to find a way out," Yusei began drawing 5 cards, "Alright, Trudge! Bring it on!"

"LET'S RIDE!"

**Yusei & Jason: 4000 (0)**

**Trudge & Altman: 4000 (0)**

"Let's get this duel started, Altman! I draw!" he drew his sixth card, "and I'll start by playing Quilbolt Hedgehog(800/800) in defense mode!" Yusei's hedgehog rose up with a blue aura.

Yusei finally found the map on his runner's screen, 'There's the schematic. If we could if we can find a way to escape through that opening, we're home free!'

"Get ready, Hutchins!" Altman chuckled, "I draw! And I summon (1) Search Striker(1600/1200) in attack mode!" A blue portal opened and the trench coat clad warrior with laser rifles for arms flew from it, "Search Striker, blast those Satellites' puny little monster!" Striker grabbed its laser and blasted a blue beam from it, disintegrating Quillbolt Hedgehog. Yusei and Jason were defenseless. "Now I set one card face-down! Got any more cards you want to throw away?"

"You're about to find out," Yusei drew, "From _my_ hand, I summon the tuner monster, Junk Synchron(1300/500)!" Yusei's signature tuner appeared, "and since I successfully Normal-Summoned Junk Synchron, I can also Special-Summon Quilbolt Hedgehog back to the field in defense position! Sorry, but this hedgehog's not done with you!" the hedgehog returned to the field, Before it makes a move, though, Junk Synchron is gonna give it a little tune-up!"

Junk Synchron pulled his ripcord and began to vibrate, rising into the air and splitting into three glowing rings that encircled Shield Wing, reducing it to two glowing stars. The stars aligned within the rings and connected as Yusei chanted:

"Clustering stars will call upon a new force. Become the path its light shines upon. Synchro Summon! Show yourself, Junk Warrior(2300/1000)!"

The cobalt crusader then appeared with his signature stance, "Too bad he can't stick around," but Altman activated her reverse card, "I activate Discard Counter! With this trap card, it returns the Synchro Monster back to your Extra Deck, and then all monsters used return to the field in defense mode! Looks to me like your Junk Warrior is about to break into pieces!"

Junk Warrior's two parts came back with a blue glow (Quillbolt Hedgehog DEF: 800) (Junk Synchron DEF: 500). "I hope you like those two, because you're stuck with them for awhile," Altman sneered, "Discord Counter also stops you from summoning a monster until the End Phase of your next turn!"

Yusei saw and opening in the giant hallway a few yards away, "We just need to get through that opening and get out of here, Jason! Follow my lead!" Yusei sped up and Jason followed suit.

"Hmph, where do you two think you're going?" Trudge smirked. Yusei and Charlie looked ahead. There was a door that led to the center of the building. It was shutting close however, but even as fast as their runners could take them, they were too late as the door completely shut, so they swerved at that corner.

"There's no hatch to wiggle through this time, you sewer rats!" Trudge cackled, "You're gonna have to turn around and face the big cats!" each time they reached an opening, it instantly closed off, "Now tell me why Goodwin's so interested in you kids! Tell me and we'll 'might' let you go!"

The Satellite Duo remained silent.

"You got nothing to say? Well, this will get you talking!" Trudge drew, "From my hand, I summon (2) Pursuit Chaser(1400/600) in attack mode!" a white security droid appeared from a portal with a wail of sirens, "And now that we got these two monsters on our field, your Quilbolt and Junk Synchron are about to get blasted back to the scrapheap!" the two monsters aimed their lasers directly at their targets.

Trudge/Altman: "FIRE!" Both monster's lasers fired and Yusei's two monsters were blown to bits, "Now here's the best part: since Pursuit Chaser destroyed a monster in defense position, you get hit with 500 points of direct damage!" Trudge laughed as a blast of energy shot surged around the Satellites.

**Yusei & Jason: 4000 (4)**

**Trudge & Altman: 4000 (4)**

"And with that, I slap one card face-down and end my turn," a reverse card appeared beside Trudge's runner.

"I got the front seat," Jason drew, "I'll park 1 card face-down, and that's it."

"You're done Satellites! Neither of you can summon a monster for 2 more turns. Every possible escape route has been sealed off. You're totally trapped!" Altman sneered, "The only thing waiting for you down _this_ road is a dead-end!"

"And we mean that literally! You're heading straight for a wall!" Trudge pointed out as the all saw another doorway sealed.

They were driving down a hallway, straight towards yet another steel door…

"_Keep going," _

A familiar voice just came out of Yusei's helmet, "Blister? Is that you?"

"_Keep going forward."_

"But, uh—"

* * *

Blister: "GOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

* * *

"…Alright. Jason, we have to move forward!"

"What? Are you crazy?"

"Just trust me and follow my lead!"

Jason nodded and slammed the accelerator to keep up with Yusei. They went straight for the door.

"NO WAY!"

"WHAT'RE THOSE PUNKS DOING?"

The Satellite Duo let out a battle cry as they sped inch after inch towards the steel door…

**TO BE CONTINUED…

* * *

**

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) ****Machina Soldier**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1600 DEF/1500

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:** When this card is Normal Summoned while you control no monsters, you can Special Summon 1 "Machina" monster from your hand, except "Machina Soldier".

**(2) ****Machina Sniper**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1800 DEF/800

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:** "Machina" monsters cannot be attacked, except "Machina Sniper".

**(3) ****Dark Blade**

**Stats:** [Warrior] Level 4 ATK/1800 DEF/1500

**Attribute: **Dark

**(4) ****Water Spirit**

**Stats:** [Aqua] Level 4 ATK/400 DEF/1200

**Attribute: **Water

**(5) ****Gaia Knight, The Force of Earth**

**Stats:** [Warrior/Synchro] Level 6 ATK/2600 DEF/800

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Synchro Requirements: **1 Tuner monster+1 or more Non-Tuner monsters

**(6) ****Machina Defender**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1200 DEF/1800

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:** FLIP: Add 1 "Commander Covington" from your Deck to your hand.

**(7) ****Commander Covington**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1000 DEF/600

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:** You can send once face-up "Machina Soldier", "Machina Sniper", and "Machina Defender" you control to the Graveyard to Special Summon 1 "Machine Force" from your hand or your Deck.

**(7) ****Commander Covington**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1000 DEF/600

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:** You can send once face-up "Machina Soldier", "Machina Sniper", and "Machina Defender" you control to the Graveyard to Special Summon 1 "Machine Force" from your hand or your Deck.

**(8) ****Machina Force**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 10 ATK/4600 DEF/4100

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:** This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card cannot be Special Summoned except with "Commander Covington". This card cannot declare an attack unless you pay 1000 Life Points. You can send this card from the field to the Graveyard to select and Special Summon one each of "Machina Soldier", "Machina Sniper", and "Machina Defender" from your Graveyard.

**(9) ****Coppycat**

**Stats:** [Spellcaster/Effect] Level 1 ATK/0 DEF/0

**Attribute: **Light  
**Description:** When this card is Summoned, select 1 monster your opponent controls. This card's ATK and DEF become equal to the selected monster's original ATK and DEF.

**(10) ****Machina Fortress**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 7 ATK/2500 DEF/1600

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:** You can discard Machine-Type monster(s) whose total Levels equal 8 or more to Special Summon this card from your hand or Graveyard. When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard, select and destroy 1 card your opponent controls. When this face-up card you control is targeted by an opponent's Effect Monster's effect, look at your opponent's hand and discard 1 card from their hand.

**(11) ****Colossal Fighter**

**Stats:** [Warrior/Effect] Level 8 ATK/2800 DEF/1000

**Attribute: **Dark

**Synchro Requirements: **1 Tuner monster+1 or more Non-Tuner monsters  
**Description:** This card gains 100 ATK for every Warrior-Type monster in any Graveyard. When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard, Special Summon 1 Warrior-Type monster from either player's Graveyard.

**(12) ****Search Striker**

**Stats:** [Warrior/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1600 DEF/1200

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:** If this card attacks a face-down Defense Position monster, you can destroy the monster immediately with this card's effect without flipping it face-up or applying damage calculation. If you do, this card is changed to Defense Position at the end of the Battle Phase. This card's battle position cannot be changed until the end of your next turn, except with a card effect.

**(13)**** Pursuit Chaser**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 3 ATK/1400 DEF/600

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:** When a Defense Position monster is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard, inflict 500 damage to your opponent.

* * *

Sorry, I don't have a preview for the next chapter, but I do have a few references:

I got that idea from an episode of Everybody Hates Chris: Everybody Hates the Hall Monitor.

This character, I based it off of the real Fisher from Everybody Hates Chris. All creative rights of the original goes to the show.

**Please review**


	19. The TakeBack: Part 2

**Same disclaimer applied.**

"Talking"

'Thinking'

_Flashback_

_Distant Communication_

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

**Yusei: "Now, let's get up to speed with YuGiOh 5D's!: When Jason and I got out of The Facility, we met the infamous 'Jack's Flush', a group of Jacks-of-all-Trades led by a guy named blister. They helped up sneaked into the Security Impound Center, but our venture didn't go unnoticed as Officers Trudge and Altman showed up. With every exit sealed off and no monsters to summon, it'll take a miracle to get out of here! Can Jason and I out-run those coppers once more, or do we have to do more time in The Facility? Let's hop on, rev it up and find out!

* * *

**

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 16: The Take-Back**

**Part 2: The Clustering Stars

* * *

**

"You'll never make it outta here, Satellites!" Altman sneered, "Unless of course you can drive through walls."

"_Duck!" _Blister said over Yusei and Jason's headsets. As they did, the door exploded in front of them and they plummeted off the edge, the two patrollers following after them. They all held on to their runners.

"You certainly know how to make an exit, don't you? I just hope your life points are packing a parachute!" Altman started her turn.

**Yusei & Jason: 3500 (6)**

**Trudge & Altman: 4000 (6)**

"Because with 5 speed counters I can now play the Speed Spell: Rapid Shotwing! And for each counter I have, my Search Striker gains 100 ATK points. Here goes!" the female officer played the spell card and a winged jetpack appeared, "And that means with my monster all amped up, I can finally get a little payback for when you dumped me in that trash tube back at the Satellite!"

The jet pack flew up along with Striker as it attached to his back, boosting his power. Jason gasped while Yusei just stared in shock.

Search Striker: (ATK: 1600)

"That's right, Hutchins! You may have escaped from me in our last duel, but the authority of Sector Security are gonna have you and your friend back to The Facility before you can make it to the bottom floor. Search Striker, take out their life points!" when Search Striker's barrels blasted Jason, he felt gravity take its toll, and he was lifted into the air and held onto his precious duel runner with one hand.

**Yusei & Jason: 1400 (4)**

**Trudge & Altman: 4000 (6)**

"Jason!" Yusei cried.

Altman chuckled, "Looks like you're just hanging on. Now, Pursuit Chaser, end this," as the robotic patroller blasted at Jason, but he struggled for his reverse card. And just before the attack made contact, he reached the console and pressed a button.

"I play my face-down, Confusion Chaff!" when the patroller's attack hit the trap card, it glowed and released into many glowing paper tags, as some stuck onto the monster. Pursuit Chaser went hurling up the shaft.

"Chaser, come back!" Trudge yelled.

"Oh, he will," Yusei assured, "See, Confusion Chaff cancels a monster's attack if the player receives a direct attack once already. But guess what: that same monster gets to fight again, only this time, it's against the first monster that attack, Search Striker! Just watch," when the tags detached from Pursuit Chaser, it fired a barrage of laser at Search Striker. But after a few evasions, and Striker was the one who destroyed Pursuit Chaser.

**Yusei & Jason: 1400 (4)**

**Trudge & Altman: 3300 (6)**

"Chaser…" Trudge mourned, "I'll get you for that, Jason. Just you wait."

Altman sets a reverse card to end her turn, as the effects of Rapid Shotwing wore off and disappeared.

Search Striker: (ATK: 1600)

"_Guys, brace yourselves,"_ Blister said, _"Next stop:, ground floor!"_

As he said that, they finally his solid ground. When they zoomed out, however, before the two officers could act, it turned out that they were in an elevator shaft, and the door decided to close before they could get out! "Hey!"

"See ya', Altman!" Jason called.

"Alright, now to get out of here," Yusei said.

Their celebration was short lived, however. Trudge and Altman busted through the door and across the balconies of the upper level. They ran through the railings and onto the lower level.

Justine rammed her runner against Jason's, "Hey, Hutchins, I hope you like The Facility because…" but before he could say anything else, a black leather-booted foot slammed Altman's face! Jason turned to see none other than Persian riding beside him!

"Persian? How did you manage to get in?"

"Call it my special 'trade'," the lilac-haired rider purred, "I have a knack for sneaking into places. Especially when we had to help out after seeing those two officers this morning."

_**Flashback…**_

_Persian was walking down the hallway towards Blister's quarters. When she entered the room, she could see Blister himself standing near the bookshelf, looking at the ragged card he was holding. Persian knew he was thinking of Aero, so she walked closer to see if she can comfort him. Blister heard her coming, but didn't bother to look back._

_Persian: "I know it's a couple of years, too late, but I'm sorry for what happened, Blister."_

_Blister: "I know what I did to him was wrong, but does he really have to throw it in my face? …talk about blame."_

_Suddenly, the two Jacks heard a noise outside. They looked out the window and __watched Jason and Yusei walk down the street from the building. A few moments later, they were followed by two patrollers of a pair of Sector Security duel runners._

_Persian: "Looks like there's gonna be a party at the Impound Center tonight…"_

…_**end flashback.**_

"Wow! Thanks, guys!" Yusei thanked.

"Forget the thank-yous," Blister rode up next to Yusei, "We're only here to check out my handiwork and see that you two don't get caught. Because if word got out that I slipped out somehow, the Jacks' reputation may never be able to recover. Now don't go thinking this makes us friends of anything, got that? I already ruined one friendship."

"…tell me about Aero."

Blister growled in defeat, "…fine. It's like I said before, we were tag-team duelists in the Semi-Pro League…"

_**Flashback…**_

_He was riding his Duel Runner, with Aero in the sidecar. Blister drew a card and summoned it to the field, "We play Machina Sniper! Now end this!" when the sniper attacked, not only did it took out a monster, it also won the duel for them. In no time at all, they were both standing on the main platform, holding their new trophy._

Blister: "We were at the top of our game, and it was all because Aero was a great competitor, and an even greater friend. He thought we would be champs forever. But Aero couldn't see the big picture: we were never gonna make the big money stuck doing tag duels. I had to go solo.

So when a rep from KaibaCorp. showed up one day with a case full of money, how could I say no? I had a new sponsor, a new gig, and an open road right to the big leagues. I'm talking about duelers like Atlas, Pheonix, Truesdale, even Kaiba herself…the legends. But was Aero happy? Hmph, what do you think?"

_In yet another duel, thing were not looking good for Blister and Aero._

_Aero: "Blister, I'm summoning out Machiner Sniper in attack mode." The macnina appeared once more._

_Blister: "What? Not him again! What, do you want us to lose this duel!"_

_Aero: "Why do you care about this anyway? I heard about the deal you made to go pro. I thought we were friends."_

_Blister: "Friendship doesn't pay the rent. Do you think I wanna spend my life in the tag-duel bush-leagues? C'mon! You don't get it!"_

_Aero: "…sorry."_

_While they argued, an attack just destroyed the sniper._

_Blister: "Look at what you just did, Aero! I may as well kiss my contract goodbye!"_

_Aero: "It's just our friendship is all I got!"_

_Blister: "Well guess what: right now, you got nothing, then!"_

_Suddenly, their opponent's runner began spinning out of control, then a stray object smashed their own's directly at where they were connected, and lost control as well. They crashed through the railing, off the course and hurling toward a factory. _

_Aero: "Blister!"_

_Blister: "Grab my hand!"_

_Both were trying to reach to reach each other as far as they could, "Almost there…" but as Blister saw the tower moving closer and closer, without thinking… he turned away._

_His runner skied to a rough stop throwing Blister onto the cold ground. As he tried to get up, he realized that Aero was stuck in the sidecar. "Aero…oh no…Aero! Look out!" unable to get up, he was forced to watch his best friend__ hit the wall and the sidecar exploded…_

…_**end flashback.**_

"He was pretty banged up. He spent a few months in the hospital. He never let me say sorry. In fact he only sent me that card you saw to remind me of what a bad friend I was," Blister smirked, "I hope these pals of yours are worth the risk. Because if I know anything about friends, I bet they only hang out with you because they want something from you in return."

No! They're good people, Blister!" Yusei protested.

"Nobody's good forever. So you better just watch out for yourself!"

"You're wrong. You're just too angry with yourself to see the truth."

"Blister, can't you see that your friend Aero never wanted to hurt you?" Persian replied.

"Huh?"

"Sometimes friends… do some stupid things, huh?"

"You can say that again!" They all saw Trudge reappear from the darkness, followed by Altman and her Search Striker, "This duel's not over yet, punks! Make your move! But, don't think it'll help you escape me."

'I'd better make a move so we don't end up back in lockdown,' Yusei thought as he started his turn, "Here we go; time to rev it up! I summon Speed Warrior In attack mode!" Yusei's grey warrior appeared(ATK: 900), "And check this out, 'Officer': my warrior's ATK points are doubled!"

"Ha! What a waste, Yusei! I activate my trap card, Power Bind!" Trudge revealed his reverse card, "Now Speed Warrior can't attack until next turn. And until then, his ATK points are 0, kinda like the chances of getting out of here without a one-way ticket back to The Facility. Sorry, Satellites, but those runners are staying put!" he cackled.

Speed Warrior: (ATK: 0)

"Hey, Trudge," Altman sneered, "Why do we have to go through all the trouble of just keeping them? We should just crush those runners into a couple of cubes!"

"That's a great idea! I'll be sure to take pictures so they can hang 'em in their cells!"

"Wow, they sure don't like you," Blister said to Yusei.

"If you think this is bad now, wait until I play this: Reactor Pod!" Yusei played a Speed Spell onto his duel disk, "And this card forces them to take damage equal to Speed Warrior's original ATK points!"

"Wow, you remind me so muck of Aero; you're not afraid of anything those guys throw your way."

"Well, I'm sure Aero wasn't scare because he had you as his teammate. And that's exactly how Jason and I fell right now having you and Persian and our wingmen, Blister," Speed Warrior unleashed a torrent of energy as in his Officer Trudge.

**Yusei & Jason: 1400 (5)**

**Trudge & Altman: 2400 (7)**

"What else you got?" Trudge growled, "Or is that all for now?"

"I'm just gonna play a face-down, Trudge." A reverse card appeared beside Yusei.

"About time; now I draw. And don't forget, punk. Speed Warrior's got 0 ATK points, which means he should be east picking. Search Striker, attack!" Search Striker blasted Speed Warrior, but Yusei's reverse card lifted up before the attack could connect.

"Not so fast! I play my trap, Scrap Iron Scarecrow!" the scarecrow appeared and formed a barrier to block Striker's blast, "Sorry, Trudge, not only is your attack canceled, but I get to place my scarecrow face-down again. You'll have to try harder than that."

"Is this what you had in mind? I activate my trap card, Terminal Countdown!" Trudge revealed a trap card which shows a numerical keypad seemingly attached to a bomb in a scene similar to the climax of the film _Goldfinger_, "and this card is all about giving something to get something; the more set cards I send to the graveyard, the more life points you lose: 500 for one, 1500 for three, and 3000 for four! Last I checked, you have 1400 life points. So by sending three cards to the graveyard you lose the duel and we win. I got one face-down out there already!"

"And come next turn I'm gonna throw down two more and make three!" Altman finished holding a peace sign, "And after that…"

Trudge/Altman: "It's game over, Satellites!"

Officer Trudge quickly slapped a card into his spell/trap zone, "You have one turn left, Jason; make it count!"

"I just don't see how you guys can win this duel now, Jason," Persian cried, "No matter how fast you try and go, you can't outrun that card's effect!"

"But that doesn't mean I have to stop trying; I'm taking the green light!" Jason drew started his turn, "First I'll switch Yusei's Speed Warrior to defense mode," Speed Warrior turned blue as he crossed his arms and knelt, "and next I'll summon out (1) Healing Wave Generator(800/1600) to help generate a little more 'D' for us!" A machine with some lights and a mirror on it rose up(DEF: 1600), "Because thanks to its special ability, I can select one monster we control on the field, and gain 100 life points equal to the level of that monster. And by picking Speed warrior, I can give out life points a 200 point boost!" the generator rained tiny bright particles on Jason like angel dust, "And with that bonus, it looks like you need four reverse cards to win this, Altman, and I'm not letting that happen."

**Yusei & Jason: 1600 (7)**

**Trudge & Altman: 2400 (9)**

"Well see, Satellite," Altman growled.

"If you goal is to make that lady even angrier, I call that combo a resounding success," Persian joked, "I just hope you can pull this off, Jason."

"Me too," Jason set two reverse card and ended his turn.

"Alright then, my move," Altman drew, "And I summon the tuner monster, (2) Torapart(600/600)!" A blue portal opened and a bizarre creature something like a witch puppet appeared, its body ending in the upper thighs at some sort of black shield, with an identical puppet emerging from the other side(ATK: 600), "And now I tune my Torapart with my Search Striker, in order to Synchro-Summon, Goyo Guardian(2800/2000)!

Torapart rose upwards and split into two synchro-gates that descended and encircled the ascending Search Striker, reducing it to four glowing stars. The stars aligned and connected as a jet bright energy brought forth the dreaded kabuki warrior(ATK: 2800), "Now take out that Healing Wave Generator!"

"Don't you learn? I can still activate my Scrap Iron Scarecrow!" Yusei activated his reverse card, but electricity coursed through it as it froze in place.

"Oh no, you can't! See, with Goyo Guardian Synchro-Summoned with Torapart, you can't use your traps against it during the Battle Phase. So it looks like Scrap Iron Scarecrow's scaring nothing away!"

Goyo swung its rope-and-jutte at Healing Wave Generator. Goyo Guardian smashed the Generator and roped it over to Altman's side, "So with your generator on my side, not only can I use its strength to fortify my defenses, but you own monster's gonna win this for us, Jason Hutchins! Because now I get a power surge, to a tune of 100 life points for each level of monster I pick. And but choosing my Goyo Guardian, I gain _600_ more life points! We're almost back to full power!" Justine cackled as the generator shown down her and her runner.

**Yusei & Jason: 1600 (8)**

**Trudge & Altman: 3000 (10)**

"Hutchins, there's nothing better that outsmarting a couple of smart-alecks! Haha! And don't think I forgot about Terminal Countdown!" she slaps a card on her duel disk, "So with this face-down, you're one card away from losing!"

"Hey, what are you two doing?" Blaster pleaded, "It's like I said, I can't afford to have you lose this duel and end up getting caught; because if either of you go down, so do i. so what are you planning?"

"I'm planning on winning this duel, Blister," Yusei answered, "And your friendship's gonna make it all possible."

"…"

"Blister, I need you to help me out here!"

"Listen, the last thing you want is me as a friend! Friends may get you through you days in the Satellite but over here, they just get in the way!"

"I know you don't believe that! I saw the card, Blister. The one that Aero rescued in your last race, remember?"

"…STOP IT! He gave me that card to remind me that I failed our friendship!"

"You're wrong!" Persian called sternly, "He gave you that card, as a _symbol_ of your friendship! And no matter what road your two lives might've taken since that day, he's still your friend."

"Aero doesn't blame you for the accident, he blames himself," Yusei continued, "He probably thought if he'd only supported you a little more, he could've been by your side all the way to the Pro League. It's not that he didn't want you to go; he didn't want you to go alone. He gave you the only thing that mattered: the card that fused your friendship. You know why? Because without his best friend, he didn't care about dueling anymore. But if you ever needed help, you'd know Aero would be there without a second to waste. Whatever you think, there's one thing in Aero that hasn't changed: he's still your friend."

After what Yusei had just said, Blister was really moved into tears. He looked ready to cry, "I…don't know what to think."

"Just one thing, that we're your friends as well: me, Jason, and the Jack's Flush!" Yusei started his turn, "It's my move! And I summon the tuner known as the (3) Turbo Synchron(100/100)!" A blue portal opened and a strange Machine shaped like a Formula-1 car appeared, with a spherical head perched on this body, two stubby arms and blocky feet growing from the car body(ATK: 100), "and the bonus of having that tuner monster out there is that I can summon Quilbolt Hedgehog back to the graveyard," Yusei's hedgehog appeared the same way next to Turbo Synchron."

"I think it's about time we take this battle to the next level! Now, Turbo Synchron, take out his Healing Wave Generator!"

"What? He doesn't stand a chance against that monster!" Trudge protested.

"What, are all those diesel fumes chunking all your brain cells?" Altman questioned, "You're gonna lose this one, Satellite!" everyone watched as Turbo Sychron struck a punch at Healing Wave generator! The punch bounced off and Yusei and Jason's speed dropped.

**Yusei & Jason: 100 (8)**

**Trudge & Altman: 3000 (11)**

"Told ya'. Now you're down to 100 life points. Nice knowing ya'."

"Why? Are you planning on going somewhere? Or did you for get that when Turbo Synchron attacks, even if he loses, I get to special-summon another monster straight from my hand. And I got just the one in mind. I didn't use her in our last match in the pipeline; Sonic Chick, say hello!" Yusei played his pink road-runner(ATK: 300).

"Next up, I'm activating the trap card, Urgent Tuning!" Jason played one of his face-downs, "This card lets us Synchro-Summon during the Battle-Phase!"

"So now by combining all the monsters on our field, we can use their bonds to bring about a beast that will end this duel! We enjoyed our time in the facility, but this Synchro-Summon is gonna make sure we don't go back!"

"Oh man, Aero played that same combo in our fist championship match!" Blister awed, "Are you sure you guys can handle a move like this?"

"Don't do it!" Trudge barked.

"Sorry Trudge, now I tune my Turbo Synchron with my Quilbolt Hedgehog, Speed Warrior, and Sonic Chick!" Turbo Synchron rose into the air, dissolving into a sphere of aura and descending as a single glowing ring that encircled the three Synchro-Reqs, reducing them to frameworks that released five glowing stars. The stars aligned within the ring and connected as one lance of emerald light that filled the Synchro Summon in radiance, and all while Yusei chanted:

"_Clustering bonds weave a greater force! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Roar engines, _(4) _Turbo Warrior_(2500/1500)_!"_

The Synchro Summon faded to reveal a crimson and black armoured warrior themed after Optimus Prime of _Transformers_, with the same general mixture of a robot and truck mixed together. However, Turbo Warrior's fingers were sharp metal claws and its head was crowned by something meant to resemble some form of hairstyle, while its mechanical appearance just seemed rather like armour. Despite all this, it still looked impressive as it glided between Yusei and Jason(ATK: 2500). "Now, Turbo Warrior, take out that Goyo Guardian!" the machine glided towards the kabuki fighter.

"You Satellites still can't add, can you?" Trudge chuckled, "Maybe you should take more medial math back at The Facility. Maybe then you'll learn."

"Well, let me teach _you_ something first, like what my warrior can do: it cuts you warrior's ATK points right in half!"

"What?"

"Yusei, you got 'em on the ropes!" Blister cheered as Turbo Warrior shot a dark beam at the guardian and took half of its power.

Goyo Guardian: (ATK: 1400)

"Big deal! Even with half of his strength gone I can still survive. But next round you're out of time, because I'm activating my Countdown's effect!"

"Next round?" Jason smirked as he revealed his last reverse card, "There is no next round, Trudge. I'm playing the trap card Synchro Strike! This gives Turbo Warrior 500 ATK points for every monster used with Synchro-Summon him! And if my math is right, that adds up to your defeat!" four beams of energy ejected and absorbed into Turbo Warrior.

Turbo Warrior: (ATK: 4500)

"How could this be? With that kind of power, I can't stop that warrior from wiping out all of my life points!" Trudge dismayed, "I won't let you do it!"

"Yusei, look out!" Blister warned, but it was too late as Trudge used his runner to collide with Yusei's.

"I don't card if I have to cheat to do it, but the only way you're getting out of here is with a Sector Security escort!"

"NO!" Blister manage to get in between the two runners and separate them.

"You too? Fine! There's plenty of room in The Facility!" Trudge and Blister battled it out as they smashed into each other. Blister managed to lock himself onto Trudge!

"Attack now!"

"I can't!" Yusei said.

"Just attack Yusei!" Persian called as she held back Altman, "Isn't this what friends are for!"

"…they are."

Trudge was trying to unlink himself from Blister, but Blister wasn't letting up either, "Back off! My friends' got a duel to win!"

Both Yusei and Jason maneuvered their duel runners 90 degrees to their sides.

"Now, Turbo Warrior, finish the job!" Yusei called.

"Attack thier Goyo Guardian with Accel Slash!"

Turbo Warrior charged, drawing back his claws to strike even as the kabuki countered. Goyo tried to ensnare him, but his jutte bounced off the warrior's claw as it glowed and increased its size with crimson chakra, Yusei's Warrior ripped into Goyo Guardian, tearing him into atoms with a single blow from his claws that struck onwards and slammed into Trudge's and Altman's Duel Runners, making the Securities' cry out in horror as steam erupted from his Duel Runner…

**Yusei & Jason: 100 (8)**

**Trudge & Altman: 0 (11)**

The Securities' Duel Runner screamed to a stop as Blister and Persian crashed along side.

"Blister!" Yusei called.

"Yusei! Just get out of there!" Blister pleaded, "GOOOO!"

Blister's cries echoed through the building as Yusei and Jason continued onwards on their Duel Runners. Suddenly, the headsets on their helmets activated once more.

_"Good win, Yusei," _Persian said, _"and you did well with Blister, too. Something tells me he won't be so brooding anytime soon. Now I know why Alex thinks you're so cool."_

"I'm glad I can hel— Wait! You mean it was you…"

"_-Who made the blackout at The Facility two nights ago? Guilty as charged. Tell him I said hi when you see him."_

"Right, and give Blister our thanks for us."

"_Of course; Until next time; Persian, signing out."_

Yusei turned off his headset, "Now to focus on getting out of here."

The Satellite Duo burst through the main entrance of the impound centre and were engulfed by a crowd of Securities wielding taser-batons. Without any other direction to go, they drove right through the crowd and suffered many painful electric shocks. Their screams of pain echoed around, but despite it all, they forced themselves to keep going.

Pretty soon after, the two got separated. Yusei swerved into a nearby alley while Jason dashed into another on the same side. Jason did his best to avoid the obstacle in his way, but all was in vain as his runner crashed and threw him onto the ground. He was unable to get up. Blackness overtook him as he fell into unconsciousness…

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATEBASE**

**Healing Wave Generator**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 4 ATK/800 DEF/1600

**Attribute: **Light  
**Description:** Once per turn, you can select another face-up monster you control to gain Life Points equal to that monster's Level x 100.

**(2) ****Torapart**

**Stats:** [Warrior/Effect] Level 2 ATK/600 DEF/600

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:** This card cannot be used as a Synchro Monster, except for the Synchro Summon of a Warrior-Type Synchro Monster. If the Synchro Monster that used this card as a Sycnhro Material Monster attacks, your opponent cannot activate Trap Cards until the end of the Damage Step.

**(3) ****Turbo Synchron**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 1 ATK/100 DEF/100

**Attribute: **Wind  
**Description:** When this card declares an attack, you can change the attack target to Defense Position. When you take Battle Damage while this card is attacking, you can Special Summon 1 monster from your hand with ATK equal to or less than the Battle Damage you took.

**(4) Turbo Warrior**

**Stats:** [Warrior/Effect] Level 6 ATK/2500 DEF/1500

**Attribute: **Wind

**Synchro Requirements: **1 "Turbo Synchron" + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters  
**Description:** If this card attacks a Level 6 or higher Synchro Monster, the ATK of that monster is halved. This card cannot be targeted by the effect of a Level 6 or lower Effect Monster.

* * *

**Jason: "Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5Ds!: after that rough night, I found my self in yet another duel. The only question is, can I win with half a deck? What about my new starter deck? Find out next time on the next Stardust Accelerator! Accelerate!"**

**Please Review**


	20. CatScratch Fever

**Same disclaimer applied.**

"Talking"

'Thinking'

_Flashback_

_Distant Communication_

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

In a well-furnished apartment, a young woman sat in front of a sofa tending to a wounded man lying unconscious. She had found her early last night when she came home from work. It wasn't until she went inside her apartment and she saw the marker on his face did she know who he is.

A few moments later, the door opened to let a little girl inside the living room where the woman is.

"Did you bring the towel?"

The girl presented her with a damp towel in which the woman too it and placed it gently on the person's forehead. The girl walked up to take a closer look at said person, "Is this the guy who helped us before?"

"This person helped get our purse back two nights ago," the woman replied, "He was the one who caught that mugger, remember?"

"Oh! That's the guy! What he did to that thief was awesome!"

"I'm sure it is…" the woman's voice dropped with concern.

"What's wrong?"

"Kat, would you mind telling me what this is?" she removed part of the cloth to reveal the person's marker.

"That's a yellow marker. When a person does bad things, Sector Security catches them and gives it to them. But if he's a bad person, then why are we helping him?"

"I never said he was exactly a bad person, I don't know for sure. But if Sector Security finds him here, we could get in big trouble."

"So what do we do?"

"…we'll just have to wait until he wakes up."

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 17: Cat-Scratch Fever**

* * *

_Jason Hutchins had no idea where he was. No matter where he went, all he could see in complete darkness. That very jet-black veil seemed to go on for eternity. He couldn't see where he was going, let alone his own hands. _

_Suddenly, swarm of something red floated around him. Judging from the scent of those objects, he realized they were actually rose petals. As more and more appeared, Jason suddenly felt a sharp pain cut across his left arm. He looked at the arm and saw that it was bleeding. One by one, the petals flew across him in different directions, accelerating in speed into a giant tornado, with Jason in the eye of the storm; and each time one would pass by, a new would appear. The petals were actually cutting his body._

_The petals suddenly changed course and then directed to a new area. Jason soon found the source of their guidance: a giant red dragon stood in front of him._ _All the__pedals enter into the dragon's mouth as they burst into flames. Finally, the dragon fired the torrents of fire directly at Jason. He closed his eyes waiting for impact until…_

* * *

Everything was dark again. He no longer felt the cuts in his body nor did he see the giant dragon. What he did feel is some sort of pressure weighing down his chest. He also realized that he was down on his back with his eyes still closed, so he decided to open them. And when he did, the first thing that welcomed him was two giant jade orbs staring down at him.

"WAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!" he was so startled by his unexpected welcoming, that he fell right off the couch and flat on his face, with that foreign object falling next to him. When he lifts his head up, he could see what looks like a little girl kneeling next to him.

"Hey, mister, are you okay?" her voice definitely came from her. Jason tried to move, but each movement sent waves of pain through his body. When he finally managed to sit himself upright on the floor, he can take the full description of the child. She has emerald-green eyes shone on her head of short black hair. He can see that she was wearing pink-and-white pajamas, except for one major difference: fitted on her hands and feet are furry white plush-paw. The way she sat would make him think she was a real cat.

"Kat, you can at least learn not to lean on people while they're resting," a soft voice came from a distance. A woman walked up towards the two of them. She has long, dark-green hair and her bright amber eyes were bright and pure. She was wearing a light pink nightgown, and was carrying a tray in her hands, "I'm sorry if she woken you. You must be hungry from whatever happened last night, so I made this for you," she settled the tray on the floor in front of Jason. On it was a plate full of eggs, bacon, sausage, all the essential breakfast items. Famished as he is, Jason started scarfing down his food without a second thought. Two minutes later…

"My, I was right to make breakfast earlier this morning," the young lady took the empty plate and took it back into the kitchen. With breakfast aside, everyone sat down on the floor of the elegant living room. "Now, I'm sure you're wondering where you are. See, you're in our living room, in an apartment known as the Tops."

"…the Tops?"

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

"Didn't you hear what I just said? There may be a fugitive in there!" Altman yelled.

Our infamous Securities at the base of a ramp leading up to the Tops, engaged in argument with another officer who is guarding the gates.

"I understand, ma'am," the officer said "but again, all street-level officers wishing to enter the Tops must present Search-and-Seizure Form 23Q, which can be obtained by submitting an A-Level warrant request to central headquarters. Once you're approved…"

"BLAH, BLAH, BLAH!" Justine threw herself at the officer and lifted him off the ground using uncanny strength, "You got a couple of Satellite street rats wreaking havoc in there! Now let us in before I give you two fists full of reason to do it!"

"All street-level officers wishing to enter the Tops must present Search-and-Seizu—"

"Alright, alright!" the Security Southerner released the officer stormed away as he continued.

"So, how'd it go," Trudge asked as he waited for Altman outside the patrol car.

"Jeeves over there treated me like I was some second-class citizen," she growled.

"I told you, we gotta be A-Level detectives to get in there without a hassle."

Just then, a woman with a black overcoat and hat, and dark visor shades walked to the gate. Her blond pigtails bounced as she approached the guard. She remained emotionless as she presented her badge and a piece of paper to him, "I would like to enter the Tops residents, please."

"Of course. Welcome, Detective Isley Spye," the guard quickly went into his both and opened the gate-arm for her. Isley smirked as she quietly walked through the gate.

"See? Toldja," Trudge cracked.

That made Altman even angrier. She slammed her fist on the car roof as her anger flared, "These Top-Security snobs actually think they're superior just because they guard the rich cats!" she snarled, "But they're no better than us!"

"So, what do we do about Yusei and that Hutchins kid?"

"That Satellite's gotta be in there, I'm sure of it! He's gotta come out eventually. And I'll be waiting for him."

* * *

"You're in a special apartment building called the 'Tops'," the woman explained, "We just moved in a week ago."

"It's the greatest place in the world," the girl said gleefully, "Only super-rich people could live here!"

"Uh, I don't think he wants to here all that," the woman whispered to the girl. "My sister and I found you downstairs… well, at the ground-floor, anyway. You crashed your Duel Runner and you were hurt, so we brought you up here. And we got your Runner here too." She gestured to a side room, which was currently storing Jason's Duel Runner, "We stood up half the night taking care of you, Jason Hutchins."

"Wait, how did you know that's my name?" Jason asked.

"I saw it on your dog-tag while I was treating you wounds," she pointed at the tag around Jason's neck, "and don't worry about your cards. They're all in your jacket along with your duel runner… I'm sorry; I didn't bother to introduce myself. My name I Gabriella Cheshire, but you can just call me Gabriel."

"And I'm Katherine Cheshire," the girl ecstatically hopped up from the floor as she batted the air with her oversized mittens, "N-E-K-O! That spells Kat!"

"Oh, well, I'm sorry if I caused you any trouble, but thank you for taking care of me," Jason tried to stand up, but he winched as the point forced him to sit back down.

"Not in the shape that you are in," Gabriella assured, "it's going to take a bit longer to recover and exerting yourself will only make the wounds heal a lot slower. Besides, if you're worried about Sector Security, only an A-Level detective can enter the residence. But just in case I wouldn't mind if you left as soon as you're better."

"…OK."

"Wait! If you're a duelist, then wait here for a sec!" Katherine scampered out of the living room(she made sure to take her gloves off first). Jason can hear the sounds of cluttered items being tossed around where she was. A few seconds later, she hurried back into the living room carrying an envelope, "Do you have one of these?"

Jason watched as she quickly opened the envelope and flashed a smaller card from inside it. Golden foiled letters revealed, "The Fortune Cup?"

"That's right! N-E-K-O! That spells Fortune Cup! It's this awesome tournament that KaibaCorp. randomly selected. And I get to compete!"

"I found it in the mail for her a few days ago," Gabriel said, "And she's been excited about it ever since."

"It also says that Jack Atlas is gonna be there," Katherine bounced up and down, "oh boy, oh boy, oh boy! I can't wait!"

"The Fortune Cup, huh?" Jason thought aloud, "Maybe this tournament could have the answers I'm looking for."

"I'm sorry, were you thinking of looking for someone there?" Gabriel asked.

Jason didn't really mean to speak his mind, but since they found out, he figured he should tell them. He told them everything that happened to him, from how he woke up in The Satellite, to how he escaped Justine Altman at the Impound Center.

"Oh my, it must be really hard, not knowing who you are, especially in a dangerous place The Satellite, Mr. Hutchins," Gabriel said worriedly.

"It's not all bad anyway," Jason said, "There are also really nice people there too."

"So you woke up with amnesia, and you duel a lot of people so you can remember stuff?" that part of the story got Katherine curious. Then an idea lit up in her mind, "Wait! I wanna go get something! Don't go anywhere!"

"I don't think I have a choice," Jason joked.

Katherine ran back into the room and the familiar sound of cluttered items was heard again. A few moment later, she ran out, wearing a sailor costume, fuzzy pointed ears on top of her head, and on her left arm is a duel disk, "If dueling can get your memory back a little bit, them dueling more stronger people can get it back!" she said, "Mr. Amnesia Man, I challenge you!"

"…a duel!"

"Katherine, please don't do this," Gabriel said sternly, "I'm sorry, like I said before, my sister can get very excited sometimes. You don't have to if you don't want to…"

"It's okay," with a small struggle, Jason managed to stand up, with a big grin on his face, "It's been a long time since I had a small normal game," he walked to his duel runner, opened the glove compartment in the back and found the golden duel disk that Rico Burst gave him.

He also found his deck inside his jacket. They were still mixed with some of Yusei's cards. When he separated them, he knew he doesn't have enough cards for a full deck. Then he remembered that he also go the structure deck from yesterday. So he took out the deck and mixed it in with his other cards. Finally, Jason was ready. "Alright, Katherine Cheshire, I accept your challenge."

"YIPPEE!" Katherine cheered and bounced again.

Everyone moved the furniture aside so the two could have room for an arena. Pretty soon, they were ready.

Jason: "Alright, Katherine, get your game on!"

Katherine: "N-E-K-O! That spells Duel!"

**Jason: 4000**

**Kat: 4000 (35)**

"I go first! Nya!" Kat drew her sixth card, "First I'll play the continuous-spell card, Neko Penalty!" a spell card appeared showing a super-deformed girl with cat ears on a soccer field blowing a whistle, "next up, I'll summon (1) Neko-Girl(1000/1500) in DEF mode!" the monster she summoned looked liked an older version of Katherine. She wore a pink maid outfit with a white apron, and she wore white cat ears and a tail, "Then I play a card face-down! N-E-K-O, I end my turn!"

"Alright, my move," Jason drew, "And I summon Tune Warrior(1600/200) in ATK mode!" a red warrior appeared in front of Jason. It wore a black jumpsuit loosely over red armor. He wore a helmet with a green visor and small antennas on its head, and he had giant auxiliary jacks in place of its hands. It also had glass gauges, two on its chest, two on its shoulders and one on each thigh. "Now Tune Warrior, attack!" Tune Warrior charged its hands with electricity and fired it at Kat's monster, destroying it in an instant.

"When a Neko monster is destroyed in battle, the effect of Neko Penalty activates! That lets makes me take three cards from the top of my deck, and send it to the graveyard! But then you can't attack on you next turn because of that!" Kat discarded three of her cards to the graveyard slot. "But wait! Since my Neko-Polestaff was sent there that way, I can add it to my hand!" one card stuck out of the slot a Kat took it, "And there's more! Since (2) Chibi Neko-Maid was also taked from my deck, I can take her out to play in DEF mode!" the said monster that was summoned was a super-deformed catgirl. She wore a magenta maid dress with a purple sash. She has teal hair and light-purple cat ears and paws. Her giant blue eyes sparkle as she mewed cutely."

"I guess I'll park a trio of face-downs and call it a turn," three reverse cards appeared in front of Jason.

"It's my turn again! Nya!" Kat drew, "I summon (3) Neko Cleric(0/2000) in DEF mode!" the third Neko monster had ears and a tail to match her long blonde hair. She wore a beautiful black and white maid outfit with a red ribbon on her chest. She also wore three ribbons to dress her hair, and one on her tail. She holds in her hand a large gold rosary which also has a ribbon tied to it. Her clear violet eyes shown the same serenity as Chibi Neko-Maid, "Next I'll give Chibi a little present: the Enchanted Bell Collar equip spell!" the small neko was given a black choker with a large golden bell on it. She hopped excitedly as she enjoyed the sound the bell made every time she moved. "And as long as she's playing with her new toy, she can't be destroyed in battle! And guess what! Whenever I play a spell or trap card, Neko Cleric's special ability activates, giving me 300 life points!" the cleric's rosary glowed as golden stardust rained down Katherine.

**Jason: 4000**

**Kat: 4300 (30)**

"I'll play one card face-down and end my turn!" another reverse card appeared in front of Kat.

"I guess I draw," Jason called, "I activate the continuous-spell, Synchronizing Realm. Next I summon Marauding Captain(1200/400)," a twin-sword knight with sandy-blonde hair and silver armor appeared, "and thanks to his special ability, I can summon another monster directly to my hand. So I think I'll summon my Magna Drago!" a ferocious, human-sized dragon appeared (1400), "and while I'm at it, I think I'll do a little more summoning. Tune Warrior, give Marauding Captain a little tune-up!" Jason's two monsters began the synchro process as he chanted:

"Divested stars form a gallant hero! Become the steed that will be the guide on his forgotten journey! Synchro Summon!"

"Gaia Knight The Force of Earth, Accelerate!" Jason's robotic knight appeared (2600), "And guess what, whenever I synchro-summoned a monster, the effect of Synchronizing Realm activates, dealing 500 points of damage," the spell card glowed as it fired a ball of orange energy at Katherine's duel disk.

**Jason: 4000**

**Kat: 3800 (30)**

"And that doesn't end there, Kat; I'm about to synchro-summon one more time! Magma Drago and Gaia, synchronize!" both monsters repeated the ritual as Jason chanted:

"Divested stars form a timid soul, discovered in the darkest reaches! Unlock the gates to remove the shadows, and create the titan it will become, on its long-forgotten journey! Synchro Summon! Colossal Fighter, Accelerate!"

Jason's new giant gladiator appeared in their place, revealing a silver aura from his special ability (3100), "And you know what that means: another 500 points are subtracted from your life points!" another energy blast fired at Katherine.

**Jason: 4000**

**Kat: 3300 (30)**

"And that's it for me."

"Meow-wow! You made two synchro-summons in one turn _and_ you dealt damage! I just knew you're a great duelist, Mr. Amnesia-Man! Nya!" Katherine started her turn, "Now to show you a few tricks of my own! First I'll switch my Chibi Neko-Maid into ATK mode," the small Neko bounced up as it jingled her bell (400), "Then I summon (4) Neko-Maid(1400/1000) in ATK mode!" Kat summoned another catgirl, who dons a black maids' outfit, with ears and tail matching her brown hair, "And then I'll play my face-down: the Level Retuner trap card! With this, I can downgrade a monster I have on the field and reduce it's level by up to 2! And the monster I'm choosing is my Neko-Maid!" after the reverse card was revealed, 4 stars appeared over Neko-Maid's head and one of them shattered.

Neko-Maid: (Level: 3)

"And since I played a trap card, Neko-Cleric can give me 300 more life points!" more golden stardust rained down on Katherine.

**Jason: 4000**

**Kat: 3600 (30)**

And now that I have a tuner monster out, it's time to do a little summoning of my own! Neko-Maid, give Neko-Cleric a tune-up!" the two Nekos rose to the sky as the maid transformed into three synchro-gates and the Cleric turned into two stars. The five requirements aligned as Katherine chanted:

"Fearless hearts join to defend their acquaintances! Become the warrior to enforce the battlefield! Synchro-Summon!"

As the light from the alignment died out another Neko appeared, only this one didn't wear any formal clothing, "N-E-K-O, that spells (5) Neko-Polefighter(2200/1800)!" She wore a white martial-arts outfit with three stripes running across either side of the waist, and has an image of an orange tiger on it. She had an orange tail with black stripes on it, and her orange ears perked up on top of her matching hair. She had bright green eyes and six long stripes on her face, three on each cheek. She twirled a red bo-staff in her orange clawed paws, and finally, she introduced herself into a fighting stance, smiling in a toothy grin to show off her pointy eyeteeth.

"2200 ATK points?" Jason thought aloud, "But she won't stand a chance against Colossal Fighter," then he realized something, "…unless she has a special ability!"

"That's right! That's why I'm giving her a Neko-Polestaff equip-spell to play with! That gives her an extra 800 points in ATK and DEF!" the pole-fighter twirled her staff in the air. The rod glow in a bright light, and when she caught it again, she was holding onto a much thicker staff. It was lilac in color and it had a golden cat's head as an ornament, "Next up, I'm activating the spell card, Cat-Scratch Fever!" the small child played a card in her spell/trap card zone, "This lets me attack with all the Nekos I have on the field! Unfortunately, any monster level 5 or higher can only use half their ATK points for the rest of the turn," the polefighter glowed an ominous red aura as her power was reduced.

Neko-Polefighter: (ATK: 1500)

"And now it's time to attack! Chibi Neko-Maid, go get 'em!" the tiny kitty glided towards her target she and Jason looked eye to eye for a few moments, until she unsheathed her claws and made a fury of swipes at him, "and that's not all! Thanks to Chibi Neko-Maid's special ability, whenever she attacks, she goes back to defense mode!" she went back to her master's side showing a super-cute facade as if nothing happened.

**Jason: 3600**

**Kat: 3600 (29)**

"Now it's you turn, Neko-Polefighter! Attack!" the Neko tigress swung her staff like a club. It stretched into a longer length as is tripped Jason under his feet. After that, it shortened back to normal lake, with the polefighter showing another toothy grin.

**Jason: 2100**

**Kat: 3600 (29)**

"Alrighty! N-E-K-O, that's it for me!"

Jason picked himself up off the floor from Katherine's last attack. This match was as good as all the others he had been in, "Those are some really cool cards, Kat! You really know how to use them!"

Katherine giggled, "Thanks! I designed them myself!"

"You did, didn't you? …wait, you _designed_ them?"

"Uh-huh! There was a contest by Industrial Illusions a long time ago! Thy wanted to see who can design the best Duel Monster cards depending on their categories! And guess what, mine was voted as the cutest!" Katherine cupped her hands on her cheeks and blushed, "N-E-K-O, that spells cute!"

"Wow, no wonder you had skills! You created those cards, and you made up you own strategies along with them! I guess you need to discard the cards in your deck, to activate the special abilities of your Neko monsters. But tell me, can you strategy out-match every opponent?" Jason started his turn. "I guess we'll have to find out! I activate the spell, Spellbook Inside the Pot, which lets up draw until we each hold three cards!" both players drew three cards from their decks, "Next I'll equip colossal Fighter with the Synchro Boost spell card, giving him 500 extra ATK points, and another level," Colossal Fighter was surrounded by a blue aura as its power grew."

Colossal Fighter: (ATK: 3700)

"Now Colossal Fighter, attack Chibi Neko-Maid! Go, Colossus Comet!" the fighter dashed to his opponent's side to hammer on the small catgirl. But right before the attack connected, a large staff blocked it's target; Neko-Polefighter was taking the blow for her fellow Neko! The staff rebounded Colossal's attack as Katherine took the damage.

**Jason: 2100**

**Kat: 2900 (26)**

"What just happened?"

"Before you monster attacked, I played the trap card Staunch Defender!" Katherine revealed her reverse card, "This lets me selects one monster I have on the field, and you have to attack that monster with all the monsters that you have on _your_ field! And since Neko-Polefighter was about to be destroyed, I can use her special ability to keep her safe!"

"That's not bad. I'll set two card face-down, and end my turn!" two reverse cards appeared.

"It's my turn then, nya!" Katherine called, "Thanks for playing your Spellbook last turn, Jason! Because of you, I can play this: Lightning Vortex!" after discarding a card from her hand, Katherine's spell card summoned an invasion of crackling lightning, electrocuting Colossal Fighter and vanquishing him, "Next I play another spell card! It's called Feline Ferocity! This card gives all my Neko monsters 300 extra ATK points! And that means I have just enough power to take out your life points and win!" the polefighter glowed as her eyes glinted with those of a predator. The same thing happened to the chibi-maid, except her eyes weren't so blood-thirsty.

Neko-Polefighter: (ATK: 2500)

Chibi Neko-Maid: (ATK: 700)

"Not today, I activate the trap card, Waboku!" three women in blue robes appeared in front of Jason, "And that means I can't take battle damage this round!"

"Aww, then I guess I'll end my turn then," she said as the Waboku disappeared and her monsters went back to their original power level, 'But on my next turn, when he plays a monster on the field, I can use my Neko Power-Pounce spell card in my hand to take out the last of his defenses, and then I can attack with both my monster, and I'll be the winner!' Katherine looked at her only card in her hand as she giggled to herself, 'N-E-K-O, that spells winner!'

"Alright, my move," Jason checked out the golden duel disk and looked at his deck, 'Ok, I just need a monster out on the field to keep me in the game. Otherwise, I lose," Jason placed his hand gently on top of his deck, closed his eyes, and drew the card from his deck. When he opened his eyes, he looked at the card he drew, and that card he obtained… was a spell card. He smiled at the card he got, "Alright, Kat, I'm playing this: the Premature Burial equip spell!" Jason played the spell card as a red glowing circle appeared on the living room floor, "And by paying 800 life points…"

**Jason: 1300**

**Kat: 2900 (25)**

"I can bring back a monster from my grave and equip it to this card. So welcome back, Colossal Fighter!" the circle flashed as the Colossal Fighter rose from the portal (3100), "Alright, Colossal! It's time to take out Chibi Neko-Maid!" Colossal charged in and ready to attack the tiny maid again.

"My Neko-Maid may be the weakest monster on the field, but she still has her Enchanted Bell!" Kat said as Chibi Neko-Maid continued plating with her collar, "So if you try to attack her, she won't go anywhere this turn,! But on my next turn you're gonna lose, because then I'll be playing my spell card to destroy Colossal Fighter and win this game! It's been really fun playing with you, Jason!"

"Thanks, Kat! I felt the same way. But I'm not finished yet…" Jason smirked as he played his final face-down trap card, "Because with Strike Slash, I can give the attacking monster 700 more ATK points!" Colossal Fighter's fist glowed as a rushing jet of orange energy powered it up.

Colossal Fighter: (ATK: 3800)

"See ya' next duel, Kat! Colossal Fighter, end this! Go, Colossus Comet!" the fighter flew like a shooting star as his attack connected to Chibi Neko-Maid, who ducked with her hands over her head as a shield appeared from her bell helped protect her. Kat's life points were a different story, though.

**Jason: 1300**

**Kat: 0 (25)**

"Awwwww! I lost, mrrrow," the Neko Duelist whined as she sulked to her knees, her eyes covered by her bangs. She stared at her Neko Power-Pounce spell card once again, 'One turn away… if I've only had one turn left I would have won…"

"I guess I win, Kat," Jason said softly, he knew the girl wouldn't take losing lightly, considering how young she is, "Kat…" but all he could hear from her is whimpering.

Seeing how upset her sister is, Gabriella went to her side and wrapped her arms around her. She gently rocked the little girl side by side as she chanted in a soft voice… "The three little kittens have lost their mittens and soon begun to cry… 'oh, mother dear, see here, see here, our mittens, we have lost…"

Hearing her sing had Jason's heart pumping 180 mph. this is the first time he had heard anyone sine, at least as long as he knew of. He walked forward to see if he could help any. But he didn't expect this to happen…

"MMRRRRRROOOOWWWWW!" roared the ecstatic little girl as she suddenly hopped up and pounced onto the Satellite. She sent them both crashing down the floor with her arms wrapped tightly against his waist. She rubbed he face on his chest, purring like a happy little kitten, "MEOW-WOW-WOW! That was terrific!" Katherine grinned, "I've never seen dueling like this, even at the academy! And all it took is one monster to win! Oh, I love it, I love it, N-E-K-O, I love it!"

Katherine's glomping was causing Jason to lose oxygen fast. He looked up at Gabriella for assistance, who just shrugged and shook her head, "Sorry, like I said before: she gets excited like this."

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

It was roughly 1 AM in the morning. Everything was quiet and Jason was dressed up to leave. He knew he couldn't be here for long.

"So you're gonna leave without saying goodbye?"

Startled, Jason quickly looked behind him to see Gabriella lying against the wall, "I couldn't say it to Kat at this late hour. Besides, the sooner I leave this place, the better," he sighed.

"Of course," Gabriel walked forward and reached for something under her gown. Someone came by this morning while you and Kat played. She wouldn't give me the name, but she told me this would help you somehow," she pulled out a small rectangular object. It was sleek and silver in color. She handed the object over to Jason.

"When she wakes up soon, say goodbye for me, will you?"

"Yes. Good luck out there, Jason. And be careful."

"…thanks."

Jason wheeled his duel runner out of the doorway of the apartment and to the elevator opposite. When the door opened, he was surprised to see the person inside: Yusei Fudo.

"Jason? I guess you were here the whole time too."

"You mean you were here too?"

"Yeah, I was preoccupied over the night, but now I'm ready to go."

"Go? But where to?"

"We're going back to blister's place. We can see if he can find us a room there," after the rather short conversation, Jason entered the elevator with Yusei, looking back before the elevator doors closed.

When the elevator came to a stop, the Satellite Duo wheeled their duel runners out through the garage before mounting them in the street, pulling on their helmets and starting the engines. Then they shot off into the night side-by-side, heading for Blister's home. They had been riding for about five minutes when suddenly a pair of Sector Security duel runners swerved out both in front and behind them, forcing the Satellites to brake hard. Riding the patrol bikes were none other than Officers Ushio Trudge and Justine Altman.

"Jason Hutchins!" Altman called "And here I was thinking you didn't like me. I'm here to take you in!"

From behind a nearby wall, watching the confrontation were Blister and Persian, the two member of the Jacks' Flush, "_Man, those guys never give up," _Blister thought.

"Now, are the two of you going to come quietly?" Trudge growled. Both Jason and Yusei angled their Duel Runners away, ready to race off.

Justine couldn't be any more eager, "That's what I was hoping, you sorry sons-of- - What the?" Suddenly a pair of light shone on the four of them. They belonged to a limousine which in front of Julian and Yusei, cutting off the street. The door opened, and then a short man got out, slamming it shut behind him to reveal the Sector Security logo on the side of the limo.

"_And so the fog thickens,_" Persian thought.

"Officers Trudge and Altman!" Lazar called "Aren't you supposed to be watching the calendars- and-candles kiosk at the outer-rim mall?"

"I didn't get your name, short stack," Justine growled.

"I am Special Deputy Lazar, working for the Director-General" The man revealing himself as Lazar an ID card, "And I outrank you. Sorry!" Lazar chuckled.

"How come I never heard of you, then!" Trudge exclaimed.

"I'm on official business, Officer Trudge," Lazar said "So I would advise you both to leave the area immediately."

"These punks are a menace!" Altman yelled pointing at the Satellites, "They stole those duel runner from the Impound Centre-"

"Officer!," Lazar said coldly "there's very little room in this city for street-beat cops who don't know their place or when to shut their mouths." Altman cursed under her breath in anger.

"So what official business are you on?" Yusei asked.

"Delivery…" Lazar smirked and pulled two envelopes from his jacket, "For Misters Yusei Fudo and Jason Hutchins," he walked up to them, and handed them each an envelope. Yusei and Jason looked at the envelope and simultaneously gasped as they saw the photograph attached to each one, which showed Rally, Blitz, Nervin and Tank. Jason pulled away the photograph to reveal the envelope was identical to Katherine's Fortune Cup invitation.

"We would like you to participate in the Fortune Cup," Lazar said "If you refuse, then the four people in that photograph will pay the price for your rogue actions you took in obtaining those runners." Lazar sneered as he walked towards the limousine, but then stop to too look at Jason.

"Oh, and Mr. Hutchins, if you want to know the truth about your origins, I advise _not_ to use any Genex-Archetype cards, otherwise… well, I just explained the consequences already, didn't I? Anyway, have a good evening," Lazar sneered as he got into his limo with a chuckle, the black car driving away.

Yusei crumpled the envelope in his hand, glaring after Lazar, 'Goodwin, you've just made a big mistake.'

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATEBASE**

**Neko-Girl**

**Stats:** [Fairy/Effect] Level 3 ATK/1000 DEF/1500

**Attribute: **Light  
**Description:** This card is also Earth-Attribute and Beast-Warrior-Type.

**(2) ****Chibi Neko-Maid**

**Stats:** [Fairy/Effect] Level 1 ATK/400 DEF/500

**Attribute: **Light  
**Description:** If this card gets sent/discarded from your Deck to your Graveyard, Special Summon this card. This card can attack directly. If this card attacks, switch it to Defense mode.

**(3) ****Neko-Cleric**

**Stats:** [Fairy/Effect] Level 2 ATK/0 DEF/2000

**Attribute: **Light  
**Description:** This card is also Spellcaster-Type. When you activate a Spell/Trap card, gain 300 life points. You can Special Summon this card from your hand if you control a "Neko" monster except "Neko-Cleric", but it can't be offered as a tribute and is removed from play when it leaves the field.

**(4) Neko-Maid**

**Stats:** [Fairy/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1400 DEF/1000

**Attribute: **Light

**Description: **You can Special Summon this card from your hand when you have at least 5 Spell/Trap cards in your Graveyard. When a Spell/Trap card(s) is sent to your Graveyard in any way other than activation, draw 1 card.

**(4) Neko-Polefighter**

**Stats:** [Fairy/Effect] Level 5 ATK/2200 DEF/1800

**Attribute: **Light

**Synchro Requirements**: 1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner 'Neko' monsters  
**Description:** This card is also Earth-Attribute and Warrior-Type. This card cannot be destroyed by battle if equipped with an Equip Spell.

* * *

**Jason: "Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5Ds!: As I got ready for the Fortune Cup, I ran into a few familiar faces, as well as a new competitor with a fiery personality. Can my new deck fan the dark flames of Horus? Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator! It's gonna by one hot ride! (Alright; bad joke)****Horus**

**Please Review**


	21. Blazing Lockdown: Part 1

**Same disclaimer applied.**

"Talking"

'Thinking'

_Flashback_

_Distant Communication_

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

**Jason: "Now, let's get up to speed with YuGiOh 5D's!: After that rough ride Yusei and I took last night, I woke up in some wealthy residential are known as the Tops. There I met Katherine Cheshire, a peculiar hyperactive girl with a feline complex. And when she decided from out of the blue she wants to duel me, how could I say no? Although she had me in a tight corner with those Neko monsters of hers, I managed to pull out a win. Later that night, during another Sector Security run-in, this short guy who works for Goodwin named Lazar appeared and forced me and Yusei to participate in the Fortune Cup. If we don't, our friends from The Satellite would pay for what we done. Don't you think there's much more to Goodwin than meets the eye? Let's hop on, rev it up, and find out!"

* * *

**

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 18: Blazing Lockdown**

**Part 1: Fortune Cup Prologue

* * *

**

A while later after that last confrontation, Yusei knew that he and Jason needed the place to stay during the Fortune Cup; and Blister knew just the place. So the four of them walked down the dark streets of the Damon area. They kept going until they came to a steel garage door.

"This is the place," Blister slid the door up and turned on the lights. It was a dingy looking room, the only furniture being a battered sofa and a table. It was certainly Blister's garage, "You'll be safe until the Fortune Cup."

"Not quite five-star, but it's got all the creature comforts you would expect from this part of town," Persian commented, "You know; cockroaches, mice, stray cats…"

"Thanks," Yusei said, "…I think."

"I decorated the place myself," Blister replied sarcastically, "Besides, if it weren't for you, I'd still think my best friend hates me. This is the least I could do. Now you guys get some rest. You still haven't recovered from that fall you took. And if you're dueling and winning that Fortune Cup, you'll both need a clear head."

""I'll rest, Blister, when my friends are safe," Yusei replied.

"I hear you, Yusei, but you're no good to anyone if you don't have all your strength."

"Don't worry, I heal real quick," Yusei stepped out of the garage, and looked up to the Security Maintenance Bureau building, 'And I'm gonna show Goodwin just how good I feel.'

* * *

**Sunrise…**

He's gone! No! No! No, no, NO, NO, NO!" In a well-furnished apartment on top of the Tops building, a boy in blue pajamas and aqua-green hair rushed back and forth through the living room. He was dashing around, desperately trying to find something.

"Did the Tooth Fairy forget you again?" a girl yawned, walking into the room wearing matching pink pajamas and a sleeping cap. She had the same hair as her brother's. you could tell they were twins.

"Luna! He took his runner and left!" Leo yelled.

"Well, did he leave a note or something?" Luna asked, looking around.

"No!" Leo went running every which-away around the living room, "This is your fault! You should have been nicer! He was gonna teach me to be the best duelist ever!"

"Will you calm down? Look at these," Luna spotted a pair of duel disks: one blue and one pink; and they were surrounded by a few spare parts scattered around the table. She picked up the pink one, presumably hers.

"What did he do to them?" Leo walked over and picked up his own disk, sliding it onto his arm. "Hey, it fits now! So how does it look, Luna?"

"Pretty good. Now I just wish we know who he is so we can thank him."

"Well, it's his own fault for not telling us who he is. He had amnesia and we helped him. If he wanted to thank us, he wouldn't bail on us."

"I guess so… but why no goodbye? Maybe he wanders the streets and helps out struggling duelists. He's like a knight-in-shining-armor, but with a deck!"

"A knight? Sounds more like a superhero. And his name's, some big secret!"

Suddenly, there was a beep from the video screen behind him and he turned to face it as it flickered into life, displaying the image of a brown-haired boy wearing square glasses and a red bowtie, _"What up, my main man?"_

"Dexter!" Leo greeted, "Guess what, some guy- -"

"_Pause! There's no time for that! I got us a lead!"_

"A lead?"

"_Duh, the Black Rose!"_

"C'mon, Dexter. The Black Rose's just some urban legend."

"You miss me, Dexter?" Luna asked sweetly.

"_Uh, no. listen, the Black Rose is no legend. She's the greatest duelist ever. Her cards come alive. And I rebuilt my deck to take her on."_

"So where is she, Dexter?"

"_I was reading some blogs earlier this morning, and check this out: there's a rumor going around she's gonna pop up at the street-duels today!"_

"Then let's go!" Leo flashed his duel disk.

"_Leo, how come your duel disk isn't falling off?"_

"Right! See, this superhero stopped by and…"

"He's not a superhero, Dexter, he's a knight," Luna interrupted.

"_What are you two talking about? Who fixed up your duel disk?"_

"Right, so this guy's duel runner is red and- -"

"Uh, Leo," Luna whispered, huddling in front of Leo, out of Dexter's view, "Until we know more about this guy, I think we should keep quiet."

"…ok, good point."

"_Hey, what's going on?"_

""Uh, nothing; we were just discussing about how much we love your new bowtie! Listen, we gotta go now. See ya," Luna switched off the video screen, "Listen, Leo, this is our secret."

Luna's twin brother nodded… before saying, "Luna, do you think Mr. Amnesia-Man flies, or has a jet pack?"

* * *

**Later…**

Yusei was working on his Duel Runner at Blister's garage. Music was playing from the laptop he had set out on the table and connected to his Runner while he repaired it. Persian then walked inside.

"Hey Yusei, have you seen Jason around anywhere?"

"He said he was getting some supplies for some science project, the one we have to do for Fisher," Yusei answered.

"So, on an unrelated note," Blister started, "what exactly did that purple-haired freak say about you and Jason dueling in the Fortune Cup?"

Yusei paused for a moment, not wanting to answer.

"Well?"

"…it's not what he said, but what he showed us," Yusei pulled the envelope he recieved from his jacket and handed it to him. When Blister opened it, he saw the invitation, and a picture of Yusei's friends.

"So these are you friends, huh?"

"Yeah, and if we don't show up, Goodwin said they'd pay the price."

"Sounds like something Goodwin would do," Persian said, "If it's not a bribe, it's a threat. So, are your friends in the Satellite?"

"…they are."

"Oh man," Blister took another glance at the photograph, before coming up with an idea, "Look, I'm gonna help you out. I'm gonna go check on them, and make sure they're safe."

"You can get to the Satellite?"

"I can get anywhere," Blister said as he began to show his was out, "Now don't worry, you'll be reunited with your buds in no time."

'That's if Goodwin ever let's me see them again,' Yusei thought.

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

Speaking of Jason, instead of going the hardware store, he was actually back at the Cheshire residents at the Tops. He figured he would get help from someone who has and invite sooner than he and Yusei did.

"So you got an invitation too!" Katherine chirped when she saw Jason's invitation, "Yay-yatta! I get to duel you in the tournament!" Jason also realized that Kat changed wardrobes; instead of a sailor outfif and cat-eats, today she's wearing a pink shirt, jean overalls, and a pair of long rabbit ears.

"It's not like I have a choice, Kat," Jason said sternly, "That short guy Lazar told me and Yusei that if we don't show up, my friends in the Satellite will get hurt. And what's worst is that I can't use any Genex cards during the Fortune Cup."

"Genex monsters?"

"The duel monsters I have in my deck. I found these when I woke up in the Satellite," Jason took out his Genex deck and gave them to Katherine to look at.

"I can't believe Goodwin would do this," Gabriella said worriedly, "Are you sure you didn't do something to get him upset?"

"Nope, but he seems to know me more than I know myself at the moment; like the time he gave me an offer to work as some guinea pig for an experiment. It must be connected to that mark I had on my arm that night at the Kaibadome, and I don't think he'll stop until he has it."

"This is bad…" Gabriella stared into space before coming up with an answer, "Alright, we're gonna help you."

"Huh?"

"I know a place where we can get you some new cards for the Fortune Cup. It's the place where I work and where I bring Kat over to play. I'm sure it would be ok with my boss."

"Wow, that's great!"

"Also, the highway's closed for the day for turbo duelists to practice on. So if you're going to turbo-duel at the Fortune Cup, that's where we'll go afterwards."

"That's fantastic! I, uh, don't know what to say!"

"Well, we'll call it even, if you could be Kat's playmate for the day."

"Then it's a done deal!"

"Meow-wow!" Katherine bounced up and down ecstatically, "We're gonna have so much fun today! N-E-K-O, that spells fun!"

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

The scene changed to another tall building in the Tops residence, where Goodwin was looking out the window, looking at the entire of New Domino, "So how is your training coming for the Fortune Cup?"

"If you mean sitting on the couch, just great," sitting on a white angled couch are the self-proclaimed Master-of-Faster, Jack Atlas, and the CEO of KaibaCorp, Isis Kaiba. Secretary Mina Simmington was pouring them each a cup of tea.

"Well, you want might want to change your attitude Jack," Goodwin turned and walked toward him, "I've invited a couple of additional contestants this year; someone you know."

"Who?"

"Your friends from the Satellite, Yusei Fudo and Jason Hutchins."

Isis descended from her silent meditation as she heard Jason's name come out. Jack was interested as well, "Yusei'll be there? …I like."

"I'm glad. I hope that would motivate you. Well, I should let you two get back to your, er, training regiment. I'll show myself out," Goodwin walked to the exit, "And Jack, make sure you win this time, ok?" that was all he said before he closed the door behind him, leaving the remaining three people to themselves.

"Do you have any idea what this means, Mina?"

"Um…"

"I can finally take on Yusei again," Jack picked up the china cup with his tea in it.

"And that's a good thing, isn't it?"

"It's so much more than that; it's a chance."

"A chance for what, Mr. Atlas?"

Jack looked at his reflection in the tea before taking a sip, and settling it back down on the coffee table, "A chance to redeem myself," he pulled out his dueling deck and took a glace at the Stardust Dragon card he took out of it, "I underestimated Yusei in our last match, but I'll prove to him once and for all that I'm the best."

"What? Like right now?"

"I'm just going to go and even up the playing field so that Yusei definitely shows up. And if I'm right about this…" Jack begins to walk out of the room before stopping to grin at Mina behind him, "The Crimson Dragon, just might show up at the Fortune Cup as well." He continued his way and exited the room. What neither he nor Mina realized is that Isis had left moments after Goodwin did.

* * *

**Later…**

Jason was riding his duel runner to the place where Gabriella said she worked. In front of him was a white van with Gabriel behind the wheel and Kat at the front seat. When they stopped and parked on a vacant parking lot, they see a two-story building right next to it. The sign on the front shows a face-down Duel Monster card and in front of it in big bold yellow said 'New Domino City Youth Center' and a green circle surrounding the sign in small violet letters said 'Recreation Center-Card Shop-Café-Gym-Juice Bar'.

When they entered the main area inside, it looked a whole lot bigger than it is outside. The left side has several large mats with many gym gear, including a balance beam and a rope tied to the celing. The right side contains a counter which carried numerous Duel Monster card lined up on shelves behind a glass window. The very back has a bar which contains many foods and beverages on shelves behind it. And at the very center were tables and chairs where people were chatting and eating their food.

Jason, Gabriella and Katherine walked to the right side where the cards are. There thew saw a man about in his mid-thirties. He was sorta fat(not 'fat' actually, just big boned); he wore blue shorts and shirt over a bright-orange vest. He has a mat of curly blue hair. ha was carrying a few boxes when he saw the company approach. "Hey, Gabriel; hey, Neko," the man greeted as he put the boxes down, "And here I thought you were staying home at the Tops all week for vacation. How can I help you?"

"Hi, we just stopped by for a little shopping," Gabriella pointed to Jason, "You see, my friend here has been invited to the Fortune Cup. And we need some new cards to help him get ready."

"Sure thing. I'll just call on Ryan and-" But when the guy took a first glance, he stated to have second thoughts. "Uh, Gabe, mind if i talk to you for a moment?" Gabriella understood and walked up close to him so they had thier backs turned as he whispered, "Listen, I've know you and your sister for a long time, but... do you think that guy can be trusted? Just look at that marker on his face."

"I know that, but he's not like some harden criminal or anything," Gabriella whispered back, "That guy was hurt last night and we helped him. And he was so nice to up in return. He even agreed to play with Kat today. Just trust me and give him a chance."

"...well, I guess you've never steered anyone wrong before..." the man sighed and approached Jason giving hin his hand, "I guess I should welcome you to the Youth Center, Mr... uh..."

"Jason," Jason toook the man's hand and shook it, "My names Jason Hutchins."

"Well, welcome to the Youth Center, Jason Hutchins. The shifty-looking fella over there is Tyler; he works over at the card shop," the man pointed to someone in a black jacket with its hood covering his eyes, slouching over from behind the counter, "In an unrelated note, he doesn't usually take off that hood of his. Anyway, the blonde over there, his name is Ryan," he teaches martial arts," then he pointed to another man, in his late teens, wearing a white robe instructing his younger students about something called karate, "And i'm Bernie; I work over at the bar."

"Well, hi, Bernie. Excuse me, but do you have any new cards here?"

"Of course! It is what you came for, right?" Bernie led the company to the shop where Tyler was, "Yo Tyler, how about bringing out the new stuff?" without saying a word, the person named Tyler reached under the counter and took out a couple of booster boxes. One was green and had bright-green circuits running around it. It was titled, 'The Duelist Genesis'. The other had the same design, except that one was yellow with cream-colored circuits. That box titled, 'Crossroads of Chaos'. And finally, the last box was crimson red and had flame patterns spread across it. It was named 'Crimson Crisis'. He decided to buy five of each booster, including one he saw on the window display. When Gabriella paid for it all, they decided they would sit down at the dining area for lunch.

"Jason! Jason, is that you?"

Jason looked towards the source of the voice and found out who it was who called him. He has brown hair covering his left eye, and wears a brown hooded vest. It was Rico Burst. "Hey, Rico! What are you doing here?"

"This is where I usually go when i'm away from the Arcadia Movement. I come here to hang out and stuff. What are you doing here?"

Jason took out the envelope and showed Rico his invitation, "I got invited to the Fortune Cup, so i'm getting some new cards to get ready."

"Really?" Rico took out an envelope and pulled out a card similar to Jason's, "I got an invitation too!"

"Hey! So did I!" And Katherine showed hers.

"I guess we got three contestants here so far," Gabriella said, "I just wonder how many are going to be at the Fortune Cup?"

"Who cares? The more, the merrier!" Katherine bounced.

"More duelist can only mean a bigger chance to get along with everyone in New Domino City," Jason added.

"Right! And while the day is still early, let's chow down to celebrate!" Rico insisted.

Everyone: "Yeah!"

* * *

**Meanwhile...**

_Going fast, makes me feel alive; _

_My heart beats, in hyperdrive._

"Stop here," a taxicab stopped at Blister's garage where Yusei was staying.

_Do you think you can win, only if i lose;_

_Just let the destiny choose._

"Ow, my back," another voice groaned, two figures stepped out of the car as the cab drove away. it was none other than Bolt Tanner and Tenzen Yanagi.

Yusei was working on his Duel Runner at Blister's garage. Music was playing from the laptop he had set out on the table and connected to his Runner while he repaired it...

_I can feel you breathing;_

_I can see you coming;_

_I can feel the wind, it's blowing, me around..._

...and when Blister led Yanagi and Tanner into the garage, Yusei tested the thruster which made a large roar that echoed throughout the room, forcing everyone else to cover thier ears, "Agh! Turn that off!"

"I can't hear you!"

"Yusei!" Yanagi went into Yusei's view, "Hey, Yusei! It's me, Yanagi!" When he saw the old man, he turned off the engine and the music.

"Nice place," Tanner greeted.

"You're out?"

"And it's all thanks to you," Blister said.

"When you and Jason out-dueled Chief Armstrong, we didn't just get early release, we got way-early release," Yanagi said, "So we headed right over to this... this interesting-"

"This place is a dump!" Tanner retorted, "Why don't you throw in a throw-rug and work some fung-suey in here?"

"Tanner, you said you'd be nice!"

"That was nice. I'm liking the duel runner, though," Tanner admired Yusei's runner, "Twin exhaust, turbo rotor, holo-display, and your own deck. Betcha wish you had that back at The Facility," he told Yusei, "Whada you say you let me take her for a ride and see what she's got? I'll bring it right back with a full charge, and not one scratch."

"Yeah right," Yanagi teased, "you mean with your last runner?"

"How 'bout we duel?" Tanner took out his deck, "I win, and i take her for a spin, ok?"

"Sounds good to me," Yusei said with a smile, tapping a control on his Runner. The Duel Disk detached and Yusei attached it to his gauntlet. "Let's Duel."

'Ah, I gotta see this!' Yanagi thought in admiration.

* * *

**Later...**

Jason and company(along with Rico Burst, who decided to come along to watch Jason practice) arrived at the center plaza get ready for practice. They went to the gate where someone was guarding it. He has shoulder-length dark-blonde hair and wears a gray stuffed-collar suit.

"Sorry, the highway is closed for duel runner practice."

"Don't worry," Jason said, "That's what I'm here for."

"Oh, You're in the Cup, too? But wait..." the guard looked hard on the mark above Jason's right eye, "You have a marker..."

"Don't worry, Giado," Gabriella came into view, "He's with me."

"Gabriella, you're with him?"

"Yes, we just came to watch him practice."

"..." Giado thought for a moment, then looked back at Jason, "You do realize you can't enter the highway without an invite, don't you?" Jason gave his invitation to the guard, who thoroughly inspected it, then gave it back to him, "Well, alright then. Forgive me for the delay. Allow me to explain the rules: this practice is functioned as a race, which I shall be the judge of. In this race, you ride on the highway and try to reach the goal within the time limit given. Necessary skills for handling a duel runner as a turbo duelist will be tested here. If you lose the race, there's no penalty, so you don't have to worry about that. So, are you ready?"

"Yeah... I guess so."

"Very good. Let us go to the highway. All non-contestants, however, must stay here."

"Awwww," Rico and Katherine moaned.

"Don't worry guys," Jason knelt over to the two youth, "Just stay here and wait until I come back, OK?"

"...OK," they both groaned.

**Later...**

"Meow-wow! I just knew you can do it, Jason!" Katherine cheered as she was greeted by Jason at the front gate.

"Who would've known you would have the top score among all the others," Gabriella wondered aloud.

When the company was reunited, Giado stood by the gate again. "You did quite well," he said, "Well then, allow me to say, congratulation."

"Gee, thanks," Jason said sheepishly.

"However, there are many other talented racers among the participants. You will have to do your best if you don't want to be left in the dust. I shall report the results of the practice to the head office. So, do you want to have another practice, or will you leave?"

"So what do you want to do," Gabriella asked Jason.

"...go home, I guess."

"I guess that's a good idea. You should go get some rest for the tournament tomorrow," and with that, they all took their leave. They were almost to the van when...

"Hey-hey, baby!" they heard a voice coming from somewhere near the benches. There they saw a man about the same age as Jason. He wore a red jacket with black padding on the shoulders and elbows over a black shirt. He also had black knee-pads on his jeans and wore dark-grey boots. His hair was fiery-red with yellow bangs. "I saw you at practice. You were like a lightning bolt back there!"

Jason and co. walked towards the person, "You saw that?" Jason asked.

"Yeah! I was talking to that judge over there. But, uh, you really thinking about running in that Fortune Cup?"

"Um, yeah!"

The man reach into his jacket and pulled out something Jason has already: a Fortune Cup invitation, "Welcome to the club! This came by the mail sometime last week! I was preparing for it ever since! What say we go for a little turbo duel, you versus me?"

"You and me, turbo duel?" Jason wondered aloud.

"Oh you have to do it!" Katherine chirped as she tugged Jason's jean jacket.

"I think that's just perfect," Gabriella agreed, "A duel against another competitor will help you lots in tomorrow's contest."

"You think I can really do this?"

"Sure you can," Rico said, "Don't you remembered a few day ago when you beat me with only a structure deck? You have the skills, Jason. You can do it!"

Hearing Rico's words suddenly filled Jason's heart with determination. He was right, Jason does have the skills. So he decided to go with the flow, "Alright, where should we meet?"

"Right here, right now!" the man said, "We're dueling at the highway!"

A few moments later, Jason and the mysterious person met at the highway for their match. The person's duel runner was the same frame as Jason's, except his was bright-orange with red highlights, with side armor on either side, and large boosters on the rear. His riding suit was red also, and has black padding on it as well. His helmet has a frame shaped like a red dragon, with blue eyes on it, and a dark-blue visor.

"I'll get this piece started, with the Speed World field spell!" he pressed a button on his console and the familiar neon aura came to life across the highway.

(A/N: as you readers have found out in our last chapter, Jason has recieved a strange device before he left the Tops residence. I've decided to call it a 'Duel Transer'. It has many functions in it, but i'll just show you one of them for now.)

* * *

Meanwhile, Gabriella, Katherine, and Rico are about to witnessed Jason's duel on his 'Duel Transer' they borrowed for the moment.

'Now let's see how he does in a turbo duel,' Gabriella thought.

* * *

"Let's Duel!" Both riders stepped thier accelerators and raced across the highway.

**Jason: 4000**

**Man: 4000**

"I'll take the first move," the man started his turn.

**Jason: 4000 (1)**

**Man: 4000 (1)**

"And I think i'll start by special-summoning (1) Gilasaurus(1400/400) from my hand!" a blue portal opened up releasing a brown ravinous raptor dashing as fast as its long legs could take it, "Next, I'll summon another monster from my hand, namely my (2) Hand of Nephthys(600/600)!" another monster appeared: it was a woman in a flaming cape, golden armor, and a matching hawk headdress, "Now by releasing my two monsters, I can use my Hand of Nephthys' special ability to special-summon the (3) Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys(2400/1600) from my very deck!" after the two monsters converted into energy, they combined together to form a massive mass of flames. Those flames formed into a giant pheonix. Its body had a feminine physique, with its wings attached to her thighs, "I'll throw down two face-downs and end my turn at that."

* * *

Rico: "Incredible! He summoned a Level-7 monster on his very first turn! Let's see Jason stand up to that Move!" Rico reached into his pocket and took out a bag of lollipops. "Lolis, anyone?"

Everyone took a sucker to pass the time while the watched Jason's duel.

* * *

"Alright, then," Jason started his turn, "And since I have two speed counters, I can play the Double Summon speed spell!" he slapped the spell card onto his console, "Next, I summon the tuner monster, Genex Controller!" Jason's robotic tuner appeared beside Jason, "And while he's out on the field, I can summon this guy without releasing a monster as a tribute. So say hello to my Genex Furnace!" In a blaze of fire, the furnace monster appeared next to Controller. "Now, Genex Controller, give Genex Heat a little tune up!" Controller transformed into three synchro-gates as Heat's armor disappeared and transformed into five stars. In the meantime, Jason chanted:

"Divested sparks form a lost soul; become the torch that will light its forgotten path! Synchro Summon! Thermal Genex, Accelerate!"

Jason's updated furnace machine appeared(2400), coming face-to-face with the feminine phoenix, "And while Thermal Genex is out, he gains a power boost of 200 points for every fire-attribute monster in my grave," more flames erupted from Thermal in a rapid pace.

Thermal Genex: (ATK: 2600)

"Now Thermal Genex, fight phoenix-fire with thermal-fire with Thermal Furnace Blaze!" the furnace obeyed as its center window opened up to launch a blast of superheated fire at the phoenix. The phoenix, however, breathed out an array of mystic flames to counter the Furnace's condensed blast. After an intense stalemate, the Furnace was rendered victorious as its flames smothered the pheonix's and the phoenix itself.

**Jason: 4000 (2)**

**Man: 3800 (2)**

"And there's more: since Thermal Genex managed to destroy a monster in battle, he'll hit you again with 200 points of damage for each Genex monster in my graveyard. And since I have two..." Thermal fired a duo of fireballs and the mysterious turbo duelist took damage.

**Jason: 4000 (2)**

**Man: 3400 (2)**

"Then I'll park a duo of face-downs and call it a turn," two reverse cards appeared next to Jason's duel runner.

"Then it's my move," the man started his turn, "And I thin I'll summon out another Gilasaurus!" another raptor appeared (1400), "And since the monster i summoned was a special-summon, you can bring back a monster from your graveyard to even the playing field!" Jason made the decision and brought back Genex Controller in DEF mode(1200), "Next I release Gilasaurus to advance-summon (4) Horus The Black Flame Dragon Lv6(2300/1600)!" the lizard was enveloped into a milti-colored portal, which welcomed a much bigger monster. The dragon somewhat resembled a metallic hawk. It has large plated wings and strong hind legs.

"And that's not all. Since I got at least two speed counters I can now play the speed spell, Level Up! Now Horus Lv6 is now (5) Horus Lv8(3000/1800)!" the dragon glowed and ascended into a higher level. The dragon's features are now updated, as well as a pair of steel clawed arms, "Horus, now fight thermal-fire with dark-fire with Ominous Fire Blast!" the silver dragon fired his name sake at its target, reducing the furnace into ashes.

**Jason: 3600 (3)**

**Man: 3400 (3)**

"And before I forget, I activate the trap Royal Decree! Now and trap that's played will be negated. Also, we can't play any spells either, because Horus negates the power of any spell card."

* * *

Rico: "Wow, I never seen a combo like the one I'm seeing!"

Gabriella: "Neither of them can play spells or trap. It's like that guy's locked out 2/3 of Jason's deck."

Katherine: "Jason can get out of this! I just know it!"

Gabriella: "I never thought I'd say this... but I hope so too."

* * *

**Meanwhile...**

Yusei and his company walked out of a side door and into a square yard beside the office building. While Yusei and Tanner stood ready, Yanagi, Blister and Persian stood at the wall.

"So what's your story?" Yanagi asked Blister, "I bet you didn't think I was-"

"Let me guess," Persian intervened, "You're Tenzen Yanagi, who was a famous explorer who hed treked across the globe for the worlds most rarest artifacts," Yanagi was pleased that at least someone knew of his travels.

"Not only that; I also gone around the world collecting the most amazing cards ever made!"

"But Tanner said, um, that your deck's just a joke," Blister said.

"What? He did not! Just see for yourself!" Yanagi took out his deck for Blister to see, "I got Crystal Skull, Ashoka Pillar..."

"Ok, Grandpa," Blister looked back at Yusei and Tanner, 'Where did you get these guys, Yusei? The ex-champ you met in the Facility, he went from foe to friend in one duel...' he looked back at the old man, who was still marveling over his Treasure Deck, 'And then there's old grandpa, and he thinks you're tied to some ancient prophecy about the end of the world. You're one-of-a-kind, that's for sure.'

"...Let's duel!" but before they can throw down, there was a sudden roar of a duel runner engine. Suddenly, Jack Atlas' duel runner swerved into the yard.

Yusei: "Hey, Jack..."

Tanner: "Uh-oh."

No one was expecting to see the King to show up here. Its rider dismounted and pulled off his helmet. The Kings violet glare could pierce even the mightiest of titans. The question ran through everyone's head: Why is Jack here?

**To be Continued...

* * *

**

**Duel-Mon Database**

**(1) ****Gilasaurus**

**Stats:** [Dinosaur/Effect] Level 3 ATK/1400 DEF/400

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:** You can Special-Summon this card from your hand. If you do, your opponent can special-summon 1 monster from their graveyard.

**(2) ****Hand of Nephthys**

**Stats:** [Spellcaster/Effect] Level 2 ATK/600 DEF/600

**Attribute: **Wind  
**Description:** You can tribute this card and one other monster to Special Summon 'Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys' from your hand or deck.

**(3) Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys**

**Stats:** [Winged Beast/Effect] Level 8 ATK/2400 DEF/1600

**Attribute: **Fire

**Description: **If this card is destroyed by a card effect, Special Summon this card from the graveyard during your next Stanby Phase. If you Special Summon this card in this way, destroy all spell and trap cards on the field.

**(4) Horus the Black Flame Dragon Lv 6**

**Stats:** [Dragon/Effect] Level 6 ATK/2300 DEF/1600

**Attribute: **Fire  
**Description:** This card is unaffacted by the effects of spell cards. During the End Phase of a turn that this card destroyed a monster by battle, you can send this card to the graveyard to Special Summon 1 'Horus the Black Flame Dragon Lv 8' from your hand or deck.

**(5) Horus the Black Flame Dragon Lv 8**

**Stats:** [Dragon/Effect] Level 8 ATK/3000 DEF/1800

**Attribute: **Fire  
**Description:** This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card cannot be Special Summoned except by the effect of 'Horus the Black Flame Dragon Lv 6'. You can negate the activation and effect of any spell cards and destroy them.

* * *

**Yusei: Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: It looks like he expects me to face him in the Fortune Cup. Is that why he decided to give back my Stardust Dragon? Meanwhile, can Jason overcome that duelist's lockdown combo? Later, who is this mysterious 'Black Rose'? Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator! **


	22. Blazing Lockdown: Part 2

**Same disclaimer applied.**

"Talking"

'Thinking'

_Flashback_

_Distant Communication_

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

**Yusei: "Now, let's get up to speed with YuGiOh 5D's!: When I told Blister about what happened last night, he agreed to venture to The Satellite to ensure my pals are ok. Meanwhile, Jason went to the highway to practice for the Fortune Cup, where he was challenged by some go-getter in a turbo duel. It wasn't until long that same person brought out Horus the Black Flame Dragon, which could negate Jason out of using his spell cards. And with Royal Decree on the field to rule out all the other traps, it made things muck difficult for Jason. Later, before me and Tanner were about to throw down, Jack suddenly stopped by. Just what nerve does he have showing his face again? Let's hop on, rev it up, and find out!"

* * *

**

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 18: Blazing Lockdown**

**Part 2: Fanning the Black Flames

* * *

**

Everyone was surprised to see Jack Atlas here in the Damon Area. Even Persian, Yanagi and Blister couldn't make anything of it.

"Uh-oh, this isn't good."

"Why is Jack Atlas here?"

"Lessons?"

"Careful..." Jack growled. His murderous tone seemed to keep them quiet.

"It's been a while, Atlas," Tanner said sharply, "What's up?"

"My career, thank you," Jack retorted, turning to Yusei. Tanner was about to get physical, but Yusei gestured his to stay in place.

"So what brings you here, Jack?" Yusei asked. Jack pulled out the Stardust Dragon card from his pocket in answer.

Even Yanagi saw the card, 'I wonder if that's some ancient relic!'

"I heard you'll be at the Fortune Cup," Jack said.

"Word gets around fast," Yusei replied.

"I got a deal with you, Yusei, for your Stardust Dragon: you add it to your deck. Win, and you can keep the card. I win, I get it, and then you and me are straight, right?"

"Straight? What about my friends?"

"What? What are you talking about?"

Yusei pulled out the photograph. "Your purple-haired pal Lazar stopped by. And he said if Jason and I don't duel, they pay!" His eyes blazed with anger. A look of surprise crossed Jack's face, "Surprised, Jack? Don't be. I know Goodwin's behind all of this. And he can guarantee he's gonna regret putting _this_ Satellite's friends in harm's way!"

"Then you'll definitely be needing youe Stardust Dragon, now won't you?" Jack said, tossing Yusei Stardust Dragon, "And just so we're clear, I don't know anything about this threat. Got it? I duel for me. Goodwin's got his own agenda, Jack mounted his runner and put on his helmet, "I guess i'll be seeing you, at the Fortune Cup, then. And Yusei, you had better bring your A-game with you!"

"...I will."

He reved the engine and drove off. As soon as they can no longer hear the runner, Yanagi, Blister and Persian walked toward Yusei.

"I have to see that card!" Yusei held up the dragon card for Yanagi to see, "Ah, it's true! The Stardust Dragon card! It's amazing! This is big stuff! You are a signer!"

"..."

"Don't you see? With that card, you made the Crimson Dragon appear!"

"But Jason, Isis and Jack were there too."

"Then that must mean you're all signers! You're all connected!"

'But what does it all mean?' Yusei wondered.

* * *

**Meanwhile...**

Jason was in a bit of a jam right now. He was now facing Horus the Black Flame Dragon(ATK: 3000), while he only has Genex Controller(DEF: 1200) on his side of the field.

* * *

Rico: "That guy could run the playing field with that combo of his! He brought that dragon out so Jason can't use any of his speed spells; and no one can use their traps either without Royal Decree negating their effects!"

Katherine: "He can take that dragon down! He still has his monsters!"

* * *

"The steering wheel's mine, now!" Jason started his turn.

**Jason: 3600 (4)**

**Opponent: 3400 (4)**

"And I summon (1) Genex Doctor(1500/1000) in ATK mode!" a blue portal opened, releasing a robot in black and silver metal. It was carrying a huge machine with a satellite dish at the end, "And thanks to his special ability, I can destroy one card on the field at the small price of releasing a Genex Controller," Controller folded into itself so it can fit into the Doctor's satellite machine, "Go! Destroy Royal Decree with Controller Cannon!" the Doctor aimed its machine directly at the dragon, and then it fired the Controller, totally annihilating the trap.

"Thank a lot! Now that I can use my traps again, I activate this one: Spiritual Fire Art-Kurenai!" the mysterious duelist revealed his reverse card, "Now, by sacrificing a Fire-Attribute monster, you take damage equal to that monster original ATK points. So by releasing Horus, you get hit with a whopping 3000 points of damage!" the silver dragon glowed as concentrated heat started building up inside, "Boom, baby!" Horus created an explosion which caused and ocean of black flames to come down directly on Jason.

**Jason: 600 (1)**

**Opponent: 3400 (4)**

"Oh yeah? Well, I can still attack. Genex Doctor, attack his life points directly!" the doctor fired its machine at Jason's opponent.

**Jason: 600 (1)**

**Opponent: 1900 (3)**

"And that ends my turn."

"Wow, that was a pretty sweet move..." the man started his turn, "But not good enough! By removing Horus Lv5 from my graveyard I can special-summon the monster know as (2) Spirit of Flames(1700/1000)!" a mass of flames ignited as it massed into a fearsome red-toned horned demon, "And check out his special ability: during the battle phase, when he attacks, he gains an additional 300 ATK points!" the demon ignited in flames as it powered up.

Spirit of Flames: (ATK: 2000)

"Now attack, with infernal rage!" the flame spirit dashes towards Genex Doctor, using his own flames ti boost up his speed.

"I play my face-down, ScrapIron Scarecrow!" Jason revealed his reverse card and the demon's flames were held back by an invisible barrier, "And after it cancels your attack, I get to set it face down again."

"Oh well, I guess I'll end my turn."

"And I'll start mine!"

**Jason: 600 (3)**

**Opponent: 1900 (5)**

"And to begin my turn, I'll play my second face-down, DNA Transplant, which change all the monster on the field to one attribute; and I choose them to become 'wind'! Next up, I summon Genex Controller in ATK mode!" Jason's robotic tuner appeared(1400), "And now, I tune my Doctor with my Controller to synchro-summon, Windmill Genex!" Controller turned into three synchro-gates and Doctor became four stars as Jason chanted:

_"Divested stars form a drifting soul! Become the winds that will guide him on his forgotten journey! Synchro-Summon! (3) Windmill Genex(2000/1600), Accelerate!"_

A new Genex synchro-monster appeared. It was like a giant fan with long arms and stumpy legs. "And check this out: he gains 300 ATK points for each card set in the spell-and-trap card zone!"

Windmill Genex: (ATK: 2300)

"This is not good..."

"No, it isn't! Now Windmill Genex, end this! Go, Windfarm Whirlwind!" on Jason's command, Windmill propelled its giant fan in rapid speeds that it created a giant tornado that rushed forward and slammed his opponent.

**Jason: 600 (3)**

**Opponent: 0 (3)

* * *

**

Rico: "He did it! He won!"

Katherine: "I told you he could do it! Meow-wow!"

* * *

After the duel, Jason and his opponent met up with everyone else at the gate.

"Holy cow! I almost had you back there, didn't I?" the man exclaimed.

"I'm just glad I could be your opponent." Jason took out his hand and the man shook it, "But still, I didn't get your name."

"Oh, right! Name's Kenichi Matsuda; but you can call me Ken."

"Mine's Jason Hutchins. So, what are you gonna do, now?"

"Me, I'm going to the street-duels, see if I can take on that 'rose' character. Y'all wanna come?"

"Sure, count me in."

"No, wait! You shouldn't go!" Gabriella exclaimed, "If what they say is true, you can't beat the Black Rose!"

"Black Rose? Who's that?" Jason asked.

"Rumor is going around saying there's some duelist that brings her cards to life. Whoever duels her could get really hurt."

"Bringing cards to life... are you sure it's not just rumors?"

"Well, um..."

"The Black Rose shouldn't be so tough!" Katherine cheered, "Even if she can do those things, there's no way she could be Jason," she beamed at the Satellite, "Isn't that right?"

"There's no telling unless we find out for sure; if that's OK with you, Gabriella?"

"Well, um... alright, I guess they're just rumors anyway."

Katherine bounced, "Meow-wow! Let's go! N-E-K-O, that spells GO!"

Jason pointed towards the now-setting sun, "Then it's settled; street duels, here we come!" Jason and co. hurried to their vehicles so they can go to the duels. One person who hadn't spoken since the duel was Rico, who was feeling uneasy.

'Those guys have no idea who they're dealing with..."

* * *

**Meanwhile...**

Deep below Goodwin's mansion, Rex Goodwin stood in front of the Stairway of the Crimson Dragon, alongside his assistant, Lazar.

"Even now, the Dragon Star's power grows. It knows our quest to gather all the Signers on the verge of success," he turned to seven cloaked figures, "You are my loyal servants of Yliaster. Your mission is to expose those who possess the Mark of the Dragon. You must push them to their limits; exhaust their spirits; stir their emotions. Now go, and don't fail me," the cloaks bowed. As they left, Goodwin glanced up a the glowing red star, "Soon all the pieces will be in place once again, and your power shall rule the world!"

* * *

**Meanwhile...**

"Thanks for the deal!" Blister called back as the door was shut behind him. Smiling, he walked down the street and into a square with several Duel arenas carved out in the center. There he witnessed a Duel  
Monster win consisting of a Lycanthrope defeating a Giant Orc, "Try harder next time!" the winner declared.

_"Is that Joey Wheeler?"_

_"Naw, man! That's his cousin, Jesse Wheeler!"_

Blister crossed the square and stopped beside Yusei, Persian, Tanner and Yanagi, "Yusei, good news: I found a work boat that'll take me to the Satellite tonight."

"A work boat?" Yanagi questioned, "Don't those things carry trash and disease?"

"If you're lucky. This ain't some pleasure cruise; it's to check on Yusei's friends. They could be in trouble, grandpa. So Yusei's got bigger things to worry about."

"Like the Fortune Cup? Hey, Yusei will clean 'em out!"

"There's much more at stake here than just the tournament, Bolt," Persian said darkly, "Goodwin and Atlas _forced_ Yusei and Jason to duel. If they're involved, something bad's going on."

"Like the end of the world!" Yanagi exclaimed, "Everyone in New Domino, marker or not, Satellite or citizen, all our fates are tied to the Signers; to Yusei."

Blister laid a hand on Yusei's shoulder, "I'm not sure I believe all that; but just to be sure, just win for the sake of all of humanity, OK."

"...sure!"

"Hey, Yusei!" a voice called to him. Yusei turned and saw Jason coming over along with his friends.

"Jason! I was starting to wonder where you been all day."

"Hey Yusei, I want you to meet my friends," Jason gestured to his company, "This little guy is Rico, we met two days ago near the Impound Center; you remember that day?"

"Sure I did, how couldn't I?"

"The two girls are Gabriella and Katherine Cheshire, they found me that night. That's Ken, we met today at the highway."

"You should've seen me and him duel today," Ken said, "The way he played his cards was wicked-cool."

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you all," Yusei greeted. "So what are you doing here?"

"We came to challenge someone called the Black Rose," Jason said.

"Black Rose? Who's that?"

"Just some upstart supposed to be posing as some sorcerer," a new voice answered. Before anyone could ask who it is, the very person appeared before them: Isis Kaiba, "I thought I'd meet you here, Jason Hutchins."

"Isis..." Jason said, "Why are you here?"

"I was told you would be at the Fortune Cup. Funny, I just so happened to take part as well."

"You are?" Ken exclaimed, "I knew Jack Atlas would be there, but I never thought KaibaCorp.'s CEO!"

"Of course you wouldn't," Isis said, "Though I appreciate the formality."

"So what are you doing here?" Jason asked, "Are you gonna practice for tomorrow's tournament like I am?"

"With these losers?" Isis turned to the crowd, "Those guys are just a bunch of amateurs compared to yours truly. No, I came by to give you these," she held up a black briefcase and tossed it to Jason, who was only able to catch it unprofessionally. He opened it up and inside it were many Duel Monster cards, all which were rare, "I'll be waiting for you in the finals, and these cards are gonna help you get there. So if you want to face me at the Fortune Cup, you need to construct a _professional_ deck."

Most of the cards Jason saw had powerful effects he'd never seen before. He had to be crazy not to accept Isis' offer. But something in his mind said otherwise. He closed the case and set it down in front of Isis, "Thank you, but I would rather use the cards I already have."

"Then I guess you won't last three turns in the preliminaries. I don't know why Goodwin invited you and your friend in the first place," she picked up her briefcase and stormed away.

"Ooo, that lady! Who does she think she is?" Katherine puffed, "You can teach her a lesson! Right, Jason?"

"Isis said she wanted a rematch," Tanner said, "What does she mean by that?"

"Jason faced Kaiba while I dueled Jack late that night at the KaibaDome," Yusei explained, "He would've beat her if we weren't stopped by tha dragon."

"He would've beat Isis Kaiba?" Ken exclaimed, "He would've been a pro if anybody knew!"

Katherine hugged Jason's leg, "Well, they'll all find out once Jason beats her again! Isn't that right, Jason?"

"...right," Jason smiled.

* * *

"Mister, hey mister, have you seen the Black Rose?"

"Nah, don't you know she don't exist? Maybe she's dueling one of you imaginary friends."

Leo and Dexter walked around the crowd all day, asking for any info they could find about the mysterious duelist, but they had no such luck. Leo's hair was now tied back.

"Maybe she doesn't exist, Dex."

"Well, I know the blogs don't lie. She'll be here."

"Are you sure? I mean, do you know who she really is?"

Dexter looked at his deck in determination, "Well, she'd better show up, 'cause my deck is ready for her!"

"Well Dex, we been looking for the Black Rose all day. Maybe we should go home."

Dexter looked at Leo in disbelief, "Go home? The Black Rose is the greatest duelist ever! They sat her cards make real monster, her spells are like real spells, and her traps are like-"

"Let me guess: real traps?"

"I you don't wanna help me, fine," Dexter sniffled, "but i'm staying, got that?"

"Don't cry, Dexter. I'm staying," Leo teased.

"I DON'T CRY!"

"Leo! What's up!"

Leo saw where Yusei is and got excited as he went to him, "Look! Over here! Dexter, look! I't the superhero who fixed me and my sister's duel disk!"

"He's a superhero? Ugh," Dexter was uncertain, but he followed his friend anyway.

"Hey, what's up!" Leo greeted Yusei.

"What are you doing here, Leo? This is a dangerous place for little kids. Where's you sister?"

"She didn't wanna come."

Dexter didn't notice right away, but he saw the marker on Yusei's face, as well as Jason, Tanner and Yanagi, "Uh, Leo," he whispered, "I don't think this guy's a superhero. Check his face!"

"That's his secret identity!" he whispered back.

"What are you doing here?" Jason asked.

"We're looking for the Black Rose."

"Really? So am I!"

"This guy's name's Leonard, but we can just call him Leo," Yusei explained, "He and his twin sister took me in when I lost my memory. But he helped me get it back in a duel. He's cool."

"Yes! I'm cool!" Leo pushed his friend forward, "And this is my best friend Dexter."

"Uh, hello," Dex greeted meekly.

"This guy's the best! He's got this combo that's like, 'whoa'! You should definitely duel him."

"Uh... maybe some other time. Hey, what's that?" Dexter spotted Yusei's invitation.

As did Leo, "That's an invitation to duel at the Fortune Cup! You're in it, too?"

"Yep."

"I get to duel you! I get to duel you!" he sang, "But this time, you're going down too," Leo turned to Dexter, "Maybe if I win, he'll make me his sidekick like in all those comics. Cool, huh?"

"Yeah!"

Suddenly, a large jolt of fire surged through Yusei and Jason, making them wince in pain and clutch at the their arm.

"Oh my gosh!" Gabriella rushed to Jason's side, "What's wrong?"

"It hurts just like before," he groaned.

"Before?"

"When it first appeared," Yusei huffed, "The Crimson Dragon!"

"I think we better go," Rico warned, "before something bad happens!"

"Too late! Look at that!" Ken pointed to a crown running await from the playing field.

"Let's get outta here! It's the Black Rose!"

"There is no Black Rose!" but a lone duelist was proven wrong as a strong wind picked up, created by a large twister in front of him.

"Black Rose?" Tanner exclaimed.

"The Black Rose is just a myth!" Blister questioned.

"Then how do you explain that large tornado?" Persian exclaimed.

"There's a reasonable explanation for this!"

A tremor shook the ground, and then large thorny vines tore through the ground, ripping into buildings and tossing aside any unlucky enough to be struck by the lengths. A great cloud of dust billowed up; blocking the destruction from view, but a great shadow was visible within, a huge dragon…

"Whose dragon is that?" Yusei breathed. Suddenly, his arm glowed a crimson red. He moved his hand away and there he saw the very thing that revealed itself that fateful night, "My mark!" the same thing happened to Jason.

"Oh my," Yanagi gasped.

"That's no tattoo!" Tanner exclaimed.

"You're right! It is the Mark of the Dragon!"

From a few feet away, Rico saw everything that happened, 'The Mark of the Dragon!' he remembered first seeing the same thing long ago.

"The Black Rose is real!" Leo gasped in amazement; Yusei began plunging into the dust cloud, "Wait, comeback! It's too dangerous, even for a superhero!"

Jason followed Yusei until they stood scant feet from the dragon, just as it vanished. But they could see the figure still standing, wrapped in a black cloak, white mask concealing her face. Magenta bangs slid around the sides of the mask and onto the collar of her cloak, and she wore a magenta duel disk on her left arm.

"Black Rose?"

"I see, but be careful," Leo started to walk forward, but Yusei kept him back.

The rest of the company also saw this supposed legend, "Alright, so she's not made-up," Blister said, "What now, grandpa?"

"I don't know!" he yelped, not taking his eyes off the cloaked figure.

The Black Rose looked at them through the eye slits in her mask, her eyes fueled with malice. They widened the instant she saw the Marks of the Dragon, "Your arms!" she gasped, "You also have marks!"

"We do..." Yusei said, stepping closer. She recoiled.

"Stay away from me!" she cried. She drew a card from her deck and slashed it onto her disk…

"Oh, no way! Yusei, get down!" Jason yelled, tackling his friend to the ground as white light and energy exploded from around the Black Rose, obscuring her from view and tossing everyone back like storm-blown leaves. The dust cloud was ripped apart by the wind and blast, and the whole world went white for eternal seconds before the blast faded.

As Jason and Yusei looked back, the Black Rose was gone. She had used the cover of the blast to flee.

"Gabriella, remember when I told you the Black Rose was all just rumors?" Jason mumbled, "Forget that!"

"Amazing," Yanagi cried, "That's what I called an exit for the ages! What do you think her encore looks like?"

"We found her," Dexter whimpered, hugging on Leo, "The Black Rose is real!"

"That was awesome," Leo did the same.

The rest of the company ran up to Yusei and Jason, trying anyway to comfort them.

"The Black Rose said you also have marks," Blister pointed out, "What does she mean by that?"

They glanced at their dragon marks, which then disapeared.

"Where did they go?" Leo demanded.

"Vanished!" Yanagi said, "Like magic!"

"I know," Yusei said, "That's why I have to find this 'Black Rose'."

Everyone: "WHAT?"

"Yusei's right," Jason said, "after all, guys, I need to find some answers."

From a short distance away, Lazar stood at the top of one of the buildings, watching their little event from beginning to end.

'And you'll get them in due time, Subject: D-5 Epsilon,' he chuckled.

* * *

**Late that night...**

The Black Rose ran into an alleyway and leaned against the wall, panting heavily as she pulled off her mask and held it in her grip.

"Those marking; why did _they_ have one?" she panted, falling to her knees and trying to recover her breath, "...If you've been waiting all night for me, then come out of hiding!"

Coming out from behind a trash can, no one other than Rico Burst appeared. He really was waiting all night, just for her, "Sis, it's getting late. We should be heading back, now."

She placed the mask back over her face, "Then let's go," she started walking deeper into the alley, with Rico following, "And Rico, next time, wait for me back at home."

* * *

**The next morning...**

The sun shone down on an immense stadium, the Fortune Cup stadium. As explained earlier in the story the stadium's interior was ringed by a Turbo Duel track beside the stands. Also, within the track was a pair of chalked out duel arenas. Between the arenas was a projector creating the image of a giant orb of blue light, within which could be projected various tournament information.

Within a private booth inside a tower beside the duel arenas, Rex Goodwin sat and looked down upon the masses of New Domino City, gathered for the event. Jack and Isis were sprawled out on a sofa behind him with a scowl on both faces, unhappy not to be dueling for quite a while.

Lazar entered the room, bowing to Goodwin, "Director, one of the contestants, Rico Burst, lead me right to her," he pulled out an invite, "I made sure the Black Rose got the invitation. She'll be dueling here along with Yusei and Jason."

"And all is going as planned," Rex said. "Soon the Crimson Dragon will rise."

"_And Yusei will fall…" _Jack thought…

* * *

**Duel-Mon Database**

**(1) Genex Doctor**

**Stats:** [Spellcaster/Effect] Level 3 ATK/1500 DEF/1000

**Attribute: **Dark  
**Description:** You can tribute 1 face-up 'Genex Controller' to select and destroy 1 card on the field.

**(2) Spirit of Flames**

**Stats:** [Pyro/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1700 DEF/1000

**Attribute: **Fire  
**Description:** This card can only be Special-Summoned by removing 1 Fire monster in your graveyard from play. Increase the ATK of this monster by 300 points during your Battle Phase.

**(3) Windmill Genex**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 7 ATK/2000 DEF/1600

**Attribute: **Wind

**Synchro Requirements: **'Genex Controller' + 1 or more non-tuner WIND monsters.  
**Description:** This card gains 300 ATK for each spell and trap card set on the field. You can send 1 card from your hand to the graveyard to select and destroy 1 set spell or trap card.

* * *

**Luna: Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: The day of the Fortune Cup is finally here. But can my brother overcome the 'Tower of Power's' assailing air force? Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator! **

**Please Review.**


	23. It's Morphin' Time!

**Same disclaimer applied.**

"Talking"

'Thinking'

_Flashback_

_Distant Communication_

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison

Within the Fortune Cup stadium, Yusei, Tanner, Yanagi, Dexter, Leo and Luna were standing in a corridor… except Leo was slightly different to normal.

He was dressed up like his sister, complete with make-up on his face. As the incredulous company of his sister and friends watched, his single ponytail was dressed into two and finally looked pretty much exactly like Luna, who was wearing a yellow overcoat and cap, "Well, what do you think? How do I look, guys?"

"Leo, you're as good a Luna as Luna is!" Yanagi exclaimed.

"Yahoo!"

But his sister kicked him in the shin, "Don't embarrass me!"

"Don't worry, i'm about to make you a dueling legend!" Leo said, patting her shoulder. He followed Yusei on the way to the stadium, "Whadaya say, Mr. Amnesia Man, Are you ready?" he asked, putting on a girly accent.

"Yep, but I think the make-up should go."

"OK, but only if you tell me your name."

"You'll find out soon enough."

"Awesome! I bet it's really cool!"

Luna puffed as she watched her brother walked off. Meanwhile, Tanner was worried about what's going on, 'There's something up with this whole Fortune Cup thing. Be careful, Yusei; and watch your back.'

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 20: It's Morphin' Time!

* * *

**

In another part of the KaibaDome, Jason, Katherine and Ken readied themselves for the tournament.

"Meow-wow! I can't believe I'm in an actual Duel Monsters tournament!" Katherine cheered, she now wears a plain yellow sundress, "I'm getting butterflies just thinking about it!"

"You think you're nervous? I haven't slept a wink last night," Ken said, "I had to have five lattes this morning to stay awake."

Gabriella knelt down and gave Katherine a big hug, "I'll be rooting for you from the stands, Kitty. Just go out there and do your best."

"Okey-doke!"

"So, Jason, are you ready?"

Jason took a deep breath, "Guess so. Alright guy, let's do this!" the three duelists began their way to the arena.

* * *

The stadium was packed, every seat filled in anticipation for the Fortune Cup. However, the central area of the stadium was empty, the Duel Arenas and Turbo Duel track left desolate.

"Everybody listen!" the MC yelled over his microphone, appearing between the Duel Arenas, "Duelists young and old, professional and amateur alike, put your hands together for the master of ceremonies, Director Rex Goodwin!" The audience burst into applause as Goodwin appeared in front on a large podium, as seen on holographic screens around the arena.

Suddenly a great whirlwind erupted within the arena as the stadium blared with music.

_They say it's not about winning, it's how you play the game;_

_But if I'm not first, then I'm the worst and there ain't no one else to blame..._

The tornado broke to reveal none other than New Domino's fan-favored dragon!

"Ladies and gentlemen, Red Dragon Archfiend has taken to the skies!" the MC shouted, "You know what that means!" Jack's Duel Runner shot from a tunnel and onto the track, circling the arena with Red Dragon Archfiend soaring over it, "Let's give it up for the reigning champion!" the MC yelled, "The King of the Cards! The one man who rules the duels! The Master of Faster himself, JACK ATLAS!"

The red dragon glided into the center of the arena, on a raised podium beside the MC, who quickly pulled away as the demonic drake landed.

_(You better be better than best)_

_Anything less, you're outta your league!_

_(Gotta go faster than fastest)_

_Can't catch what you can't see!_

_(The difference of trying and winning)_

_One's for loser's, but number one's for me! (Huh!)_

Jack skidded his Runner to a stop in front of the podium and dismounted, pulling off his helmet and snatching the microphone from the MC. "New Domino City!" he raised a finger in the air "What say we kick this tournament into overdrive?"

_(Better take your best shot; better give it all you get! When the going gets tough, being good...)_

_Ain't good enough!_

"Who's the Master of Faster? Who rules the duels?" he shouted, "Who's the #1 turbo duelist in New Domino City?" the crowd roared his name in response.

_Losers got nice themes, like 'Runner-Up' and 'Second Place';_

_They're sugar-coated failures; just a way of saving face!_

_(You better be better than best)_

_Anything less, you're outta your league!_

_(Gotta go faster than fastest)_

_Can't catch what you can't see!_

_(The difference of trying and winning)_

"That's right, it's me: JACK ATLAS!" the crowds cheered.

_One's for loser's, but number one's for me! (Huh!)_

_(Yeeaaahhh! Yu-Gi-Oh!)_

"Let's get this started!"

"It's time to meet the lucky duelists who were chosen by Isis Kaiba herself to compete for the chance to go head-to-head with Mr. Atlas: The Fortune Sixteen!" the MC shouted. One of the Duel Arenas split open and the two halves slid into the ground around as a platform rose from beneath, with sixteen people on it.

"Now introducing, the always-mysterious Shira, Kenichi Matsuda, the great Greiger, the equally-mysterious Divine, Commander Coda, David Carten, The Professor, Xiki Nomura, Ms. Akiza Izinski, young Rico Burst, Sir Gill de Randsborg, the adorable Katherine Cheshire, Little-Miss. Luna, New Domino's famous Sonya Harpe, Yusei Fudo, and last, but not least, Jason Hutchins!"

"Hey!" an audience member cried. "Those last two guys have a criminal mark!"

"What's a Satellite doing here?"

"Just who are those low-lives?"

"I just bet they took someone's invitation!"

"So your name's Yusei?" Leo asked.

"Yep, now don't wear it out."

"That doesn't sound like a superhero name, is it?"

"Super-what?"

"Never mind."

Yusei just stood and took the verbal abuse, as Shira scowled, Randsborg looked at him, Rex closed his eyes and the MC looked around with a panicked expression. Suddenly, Greiger stepped forwards and snatched up the microphone.

"I have to say something!" he shouted. The noise stopped immediately. "My name is Greiger! I know things are different in this city, but where I come from, you judge a guy on his spirit!" he pointed towards Yusei and Jason. "These kids may have been branded by your people as no-goods, but when I look at them, all I see are duelists! And being a duelist myself, I have to respect them until they give me a reason not to! A duelist isn't judged on where they come from, who their family is or how much money they have, that isn't what matters!"

Leo and Katherine ware crying tears of awe, Jason smiled with new-found determination, and Jack just 'humphed' in response to the speech. The other competitors didn't really react, least of all Akiza and Professor Frank. Divine just scowled.

Rex opened his eyes and began to clap, with the MC, then the duelists and finally the audience joining in.

"Here's you mic ," Greiger tossed the microphone back to the MC and stepped back in line.

"Uh, thank you."

Then the director stood up, "I thank Greiger for his well-chosen and heartfelt words," he said. "In our world, social status and personal wealth draw a line between us and our fellow man. I had a vision of a tournament that could, even for a fleeting moment, remove that line, a tournament separate from the competition of life, where the haves and have-nots can meet each other on a level playing field and prove themselves to each other and the world. Welcome to the Fortune Cup." the crowd cheered.

"And now, let's turn to the bracket-shuffler, and reveal the first eight who will be dueling in the preliminaries!" The hologram displayed a diagram displaying all eight duelists below a table apparently displaying the first round match-ups. The images began to shuffle, then stopped and the pairings flashed up on screen.

**Luna vs. Greiger**

**Akiza vs. Sir Randsborg**

**Yusei vs. Shira**

**Commander Coda vs. Professor Frank**

Leo got excited, "Look! I'm dueling Greiger in the very first duel!" he glanced at Greiger, "I can take that guy! I know I can!'

* * *

Meanwhile, Lazar entered Goodwin's quarters to meet Goodwin himself, whom is sitting on a couch.

"Zixzix tells me he's got everything in order," he chuckled, "Now we'll know for certain if the Signers are who we hope they are," and at the snap of his fingers, a large holographic screen appeared to reveal the Director of Engineering.

_'Good morning, Director. Now, by aligning a neuron emulator with an energy alligator, and then spinning some particles and crushing some atoms, I was able to come up with a device that will detect the mysterious energy called, ener-D. It's my most inspired invention yet! It's amazing! And... fits in your purse. I give you..." _he began spinning around like tornado, _"The one and only, stupendously fabulous Zixzix creation... the D-Tector," _he showed them a small machine sitting on a table, _"By planting remote sensors all over the stadium, and leading their signal all over the stadium, I'll be able to spot even the slightest ener-D activity."_

"Excellent."

_"Let's find those signers!"

* * *

_

**Later...**

Yusei and Leo were sat in the competitors' lounge.

"This duel disk you fixed up for me rocks!" Leo said.

"Glad you like it," Yusei smiled.

"I can't believe I'm actually about to do this!" the boy said excitedly. "You don't have any last-minute pointers for me do you?"

"Yep; remember to adapt to the opponent," Yusei said.

"I can do that," Leo stood and ran to the exit, "Nice stauche," he teased as he ran passed Ransborg.

* * *

"Before we meet our first duelists, we have a quick word from our Duel-Sponsor," the MC announced, "'Stuck slouching around at home with nothing to do? Then hang out with Bernie and the kids at the New Domino Youth Center Gym-and-Juice Bar! Keep those milkshakes flowing, Bernie!' And now, coming to us straight from the Tops, our precious half-pint bundle of wonder, Little-Miss Luna!"

Luna rose into the arena on a hydraulic platform, "Oh man, this is incredible! I should've brought my camera!"

"Hoping to take her down, the Wall of Wallop, the Tower of Power, Greiger!" Greiger appeared the same way, he was a tall South American man, with long dark brown hair and stern features. He wore a brown vest something like a plate of armor and white trousers, his skin was darkly tanned and his eyes were a dark blue, "Alright, children. Play nice. now let's shake those hands!" the duelists shook.

"That was way cool the way you just grabbed that mic and defended my friend," Leo said, "I want you to know it's a big-time honor to be dueling you today, Mr. Greiger."

"If I may say so, Ms. Luna, you have quite a strong grip for a little lady."

Leo sweatdropped, "That's funny, 'cause everyone at school calls me a tomboy! Did I mention I was a cheerleader?"

* * *

"I do not act like that!" Luna growled.

* * *

"And now, it's time to start the duel!" MC shouted, "Player's activate your duel disks!" and they did just that.

"LET'S DUEL!"

**Leo: 4000**

**Greiger: 4000**

"The first move's mine," Greiger called, "I draw! From my hand, I activate Star Blast!" he slapped a spell card onto his disk.

"A spell?" Leo questioned, "You're not starting with a monster?"

"I first have to lower a monster's level by harnessing the power of Star Blast and sacrificing 500 life points."

**Leo: 4000**

**Greiger: 3500**

"Why would you do that?"

Greiger showed a card to his small opponent, "See, my (1) Summon Reactor-SK(2000/1400) is a Level 5. So by bringing its power down a notch, I can summon it directly to the field in ATK mode!" a blue portal opened from the ground, and an immense beige robot formed from numerous fighter plane parts appeared, with propeller turbines for shoulders, eyes glowing through cockpit windows and landing gear for arms.

"Yikes! It's got 2000 ATK points!"

"That's right. I believe that one must sacrifice a little, in order to gain a lot," Greiger ends his turn with a face-down card.

MC: _"Greiger's off to a strong start! Let's see how Little-Miss Luna responds!"_

"Here goes," Leo started his turn, "I draw! You're not the only one who's off to a strong start! I summon (5) Morphtronic Celfon(100/100) in ATK mode!" in a flash of energy, a yellow cell phone appeared and expanded into a robot the same height as Leo himself, with the cell phone buttons for a chest, small aerials extending from its head and the two halves of the cell phone screen extending up from its shoulders, "Pretty cool, don't ya think? My Morphtronic Deck rules! And i'm about to show you why!"

"Before you make any more moves, i get to activate Summon Reactor-SK's special ability," Greiger declared, "Because you summoned a monster to the field, Reactor-SK gets to hit you with 800 points of damage!" his monster's turbines spun, sending twin tornadoes shooting into Leo. He cried out in pain as the effect damage hit.

**Leo: 3200**

**Greiger: 3500**

MC: _"Incredible! Greiger's monster gets to attack Miss Luna any time she summons a monster!"

* * *

_

From the central tower, Goodwin and Lazar watched the entire duel from the window as it plays out.

Lazar: "Greiger was the right choice for this. His relentless attacks will have that girl showing her true colors in no time."

* * *

"Not bad, mister, but it's gonna take more than that to weaken my Morphtronic Deck!"

'That's right, kid; get excited,' Greiger thought, 'Let's see if you really are who Goodwin thinks you are.' "You keep on talking up these Morphtronics of your, but so far, I am not impressed!"

"Yeah, well, i'm about to impress your face!"

* * *

"I can't watch," Luna covered her face in embarrassment, "I'll never be able to live this down."

* * *

"Alright, let's go!" Leo began to spin his arm wildly, "Celfon, start dialing, now!" the numbers from 1 to 6 on Celfon's chest began to flash in sequence, "Whatever number the dial lands on, that's the number of cards from the top of my deck I get to flip over. And if the last card I flip over is a Level 4 or below Morphtronic, I get to summon it out," moments later, the finally stopped, "And we got a 2!" Leo smiled and picked up three cards from his deck, "The second card is... aw, yeah! Get ready for (6) Morphtronic Boomboxen(1200/400), coming at ya live!" a giant boombox appeared in a blue aura, sending out giant waves of music, then he ends his turn with a face-down, 'Now if he summons a monster next round and attacks with it, boy, will he ever be surprised when I flip over my face-down,' he glances a monster card in his hand, 'Cause then I'll summon out this bad boy. And then I'll have him right where I want him!'

* * *

**Meanwhile, at the generator room...**

"There's no signal. Zilch. Nothing," Zixzix was monitoring the D-tector, but with poor results, "Any dy now, Miss Luna. We need to know if you have the mark of the dragon," he adjusted the controls and amplified the frequency.

* * *

**Elsewhere, in the stands...**

A strange sensation took over Luna. It bothered her so much she clutched her head hoping to keep her sanity.

Dexter: "Something wrong?"

Luna: "Just a little headache."

* * *

"It's my turn," Greiger called, "I draw; and from my hand I summon (2) Trap Reactor-Y Fi(800/1800) to the field in ATK mode!" on this command, a dark green robot formed from a World War Two fighter plane appeared in a flash of energy, "Trap Reactor, attack! Take out that Celfon!" the machine soared toward the yellow robot.

"Gotcha, Greiger! Now I activate the Morthtransition trap card!" Celfon immediately changed, retracting into its cellphone form, which turned light-blue (DEF: 100), "And now I can switch Celfon to DEF mode and put your attack on hold!"

"Ha! By playing your trap, you walked right into mine! It's called Trap Reactor for a reason after all! You see, Trap Reactor reacts to your trap card activation, and lays directly into you for 800 points of damage!" Trap Reactor-Y FI launched a stream of flak from its chest turret, destroying the Trap Card before striking Leo, who cried out in pain.

**Leo: 2400**

**Greiger: 3500

* * *

**

Everyone: "Oh no!"

Tanner: "This guy's playing a real bait-and-switch game, making Leo's moves back fire. It's almost like he's toying with Leo to get him all worked up emotionally."

* * *

**Elsewhere...**

Yusei watched the event from the lounge, 'Don't let him get to you, Leo.'

* * *

Leo rose up from the ground, "That was a cheap shot!"

'That's right, kid. Get fired up. Goodwin says you might be a Signer, so bring it on! Defeat me with the power of the Crimson Dragon!'

* * *

**Back at the generator room...**

"Still nothing. Maybe if-" suddenly, Zixzix heard a rapid beeping sound from the machine.

* * *

"I'm not done with you yet, little girl!" Greiger said, "I still got more fight for you!"

"Bring it!"

"Summon Reactor-SK, unplug that Boomboxen permanently!" SK fired a twin barrage of hurricanes at Boomboxen, but the boombox stood in place as it took the full brunt of the storm.

MC: "It appeared as if Summon Reactor-SK has been grounded by Boomboxen!"

Leo laughed, "When my Boomboxen's in DEF mode, it's able to tune out one attack every turn!"

"But that only allows me to use Damage Summon," Greiger revealed his reverse card, "See, after an unsuccessful attack on your monster, Damage Summon allows me to sacrifice 800 life points to summon a new monster."

**Leo: 2400**

**Greiger: 2700**

"So you're sacrificing your own life points again?"

"I am and next I summon (3) Spell Reactor-RE(1200/900) to the field," with a hiss of steam, a mechanical serpentine dragon appeared, its central body coated in bulky crimson armor with two thin arms attached, the arms ending in claws. Beneath the armor hung a rack of missiles, "You may not like the sound of this, but... Spell Reactor-RE, beat down that Boomboxen!" missiles shot from the rack under the Spell Reactor's body, annihilating the boombox.

"My tunes!" Leo cried.

"I place one card face-down and end my turn," a reverse card appeared in front of Greiger.

'Finally, he's done," Leo thought relieved, 'At least I was able to keep Celfon around. Cause as long as it's still in play, I can use it to summon Gadget Hauler next. Once I do that, it'll be game over for Greiger.'

* * *

Yusei: 'He's still focusing on combos he likes. He's not adapting.'

* * *

"You don't seem very rattled..." Greiger said, "Don't you realized that I backed you into a corner? I got all three of my reactor monsters on my field. You've already brought direct damage upon yourself by summoning monsters and triggering trap card! So what power do you think this next reactor monster possesses? Seems obvious to me."

Leo stepped back in shocking realization, 'Of course. If I activate a spell, I'll take direct damage from Spell Reactor-RE. And because of the other two, if I summon a monster or activate a trap, I'll get nailed, too. Not good!' he cringed.

"That's right! Every duelist needs to be able to summon monsters and activate traps and spells! But if you do any of that, you're going to bring damage onto yourself! I can spend the rest of the duel doing nothing but watch you chip away at your own life points, every time you try and do something!"

* * *

Yusei: 'C'mon, don't get scared, Leo.'

* * *

**Meanwhile, at the tower...  
**

Zixzix: _"I'm not picking up any signal whatsoever! Maybe the kid's not a Signer."_

Lazar: "We conducted a full-scale investigation. We have every reason to believe she is. Your job is to find us the hard proof we need, Zixzix. You 'can' do that, can't you?"

_"Well, there is one anomaly I should probably mention: the D-tector detected a faint signal emanating from the stands."_

"From the stand! And not from Luna?"

* * *

Meanwhile, Luna's headache got worse.

Dexter: "You OK? You want us to get you to a doc?"

Luna: "I'm fine. It's just a little headache."

* * *

'So every time I make a move, I'm gonna lose 800 life points. I don't know what to do! I'm stuck!' but Leo shook out all negative thoughts, 'No; I just have to adapt.' "You're going down!"

'Finally, she's getting fired up,' Greiger thought, 'Get angry, kid! Show me that mark!'

"I've never tried this before but here goes, since next round determines everything," Leo started his turn, "I draw! And activate Celfon's special ability! Dial, NOW!" the numbers began beeping in sequence again, "When Celfon's in DEF mode, I can dial a number and look at the same number of cards from the top of my deck as the same number dialed!" the light stopped at three, so Leo looked at three cards, 'Sweet! I got more Morphtronics on the way! I think I can win this.' "Now I switch Celfon to ATK mode!" Celfon transformed again (ATK: 100), "Start dialing, NOW!" the numbers dialed again, 'I gotta be able to bust out Morphtronic Datatron next! C'mon. 1. 1!" and finally, the number stopped at... "Oh yeah! There we go! now I summon (7) Morphtronic Datatron(1200/600) in ATK mode!" in a flash of light, a giant orange lighter appeared. Suddenly, small arms folded out of its sides, and the bottom folded out into legs, Finally, the top popped up to create the head, completing its robot form.

* * *

Meanwhile, Luna's headache is getting a lot worse.

Dexter: "Is it getting worse, Luna?"

Luna: "I can't tell... I just feel really weak..."

* * *

"Your life points don't stand a chance against me, little girl," Greiger said, "Cause no matter what card you play, you're taking damage!" SK unleashed another twin-hurricane at Leo, who knelt to the floor.

**Leo: 1600**

**Greiger: 2700**

MC: "These Reactors of Greiger has got Luna pinned to the wall! I can't watch! And yet I can't look away!"

Leo picked himself up, "This is it. By, um, releasing a monster on my field, I can activate Datatron's special power, which will burn you with 600 points of direct damage. So I release Celfon," Celfon formed into a mass of yellow energy and dissappeared into Datatron, which fired using its match cannon.

**Leo: 1600**

**Greiger: 2100**

"Alright, so far so good. And now, I release I release Datatron in order to advance-summon (8) Gadget Hauler(1300/0)!" Datatron folded back into DEF mode and created a blue portal. And coming out of it in a flash of blinding light, a blue 18-wheeler appeared, "Now unless I'm mistaken, I won't take any damage, because Summon Reactor's special ability only works once a turn, right?"

Greiger clenched his teeth.

* * *

Yanagi: "Hm, I was wondering why he risked another summon."

Tanner: "That, was a close call. Leo needs to stay focused now and not go crazy or break lose."

* * *

"Time to break lose! From my hand, I release Morphtronic Magnen!" Leo discarded one card from his hand. A giant horse-shoe magnet appeared, and then dissappeared into pixels, "Now, whenever I send a Morphtronic from my hand to the graveyard, Gadget Hauler gains 800 ATK points."

Gadget Hauler: (ATK: 2100)

'Atta girl,' Greiger thought, 'Come at me with everything you got!'

"Next, I activate the Factory of 100 Machines spell!" Leo's spell card appeared on the field and glowed brightly, And with the power of this card, I'm able to remove every Morthtronic in my graveyard from play!" four of Leo's Morphtronics appeared out of his duel disk, then disappeared into different colored lights into Gadget Hauler.

MC: "What's this all about? It appears as if 4 of Leo's monsters are hitchhiking a ride with Gadget Hauler!"

"For every machine monster catching a ride with it, Gadget Hauler gains 200 ATK points! So now, it's got a whopping 2900!"

Gadget Hauler: (ATK: 2900)

"That activation of that spell card brings you one step closer to certain defeat. Spell Reactor, attack!" Spell Reactor fired all its missiles at Leo.

**Leo: 800**

**Greiger: 2100**

"And that only leaves you with 800 life points. One more move and you're finished."

"No, not if I attack! You don't have a battle-reactor! Gadget Hauler, take out Trap Reactor-Y FI!" Gadget transformed into a giant cannon and fired at Trap Reactor, causing a giant explosion, "Yeah!"

* * *

Dexter: "Greiger has 2100 life points. If this attack works, then your bro might have a chance!"

Luna: "Go, Leo!"

* * *

Leo waited for the smoke cloud to lift, "Did it work?"

Then, the smoke cleared, and Greiger stood in place like a solid statue. The score was unchanged, "You may be small, but you have a warrior's spirit," Greiger said, "And as a warrior myself, I salute your strength!"

"Well, thanks I guess, but how come you're not, like, damaged?"

One last trap card was revealed on Greiger's side, "Because of the Delta Reactor trap card."

"What does that do?"

"By sending Summon Reactor, Trap Reactor and Spell Reactor to the graveyard, I can negate your attack and activate Delta Reactor..." a giant column of blinding light, "and use (4) Flying Fortress SKY FIRE(3000/2500) to summon a reign of doom!"

Shadowing in front of the light appeared a towering robot formed from various World War Two aircraft, its entire upper body structure created from a Flying Fortress plane, its legs cobbled together neatly from aircraft fuselage. Its arms were those of Spell Reactor RE sized up, extending from turbines on the wings that extended out from SKY FIRE's shoulders, and numerous turrets covered its body. The machine's crimson eyes glowed, ablaze as they stared at Leo, SKY FIRE giving a mechanical roar.

MC: "It looks like Greiger's activated the fatal trap card! Could Luna be our first loser?"

"I activate Flying Fortress SKY FIRE's special ability. And with it, I can send a card from my hand to the graveyard in order to obliterate one monster on your field," he slotted the card into his graveyard and panels opened across Flying Fortress SKY FIRE's body; a hail of missiles shooting from the hatches and exploding against Gadget Hauler, shattering Leo's monster.

"Gadget Hauler!"

"And now you're wide open for a direct attack!" SKY FIRE rose over Leo. A single giant bomb dropped directly to where Leo was standing. Instantly it exploded in his face, making him cry out in pain as he took the full brunt of the attack.

**Leo: 0**

**Greiger: 2100**

MC: "It's over! Greiger will be advancing to the semi-finals and Luna will be recieving a gift basket."

"I can't believe I lost," Leo cried under his breath, "Man, this stinks!"

* * *

Dexter: "Too bad."

Yanagi: "He dueled well, though."

Suddenly, Luna stood in place as she opened her eyes wide.

"What is it?"

"My headache's gone! Just like that!"

* * *

Later, Greiger was walking across the corridors when he was confronted by none other than Lazar.

"Bravo, Mr. Greiger. That was quite an explosive duel, the Vice Director chuckled.

"You're Intel's bad. You said you were looking for a girl. That kid was obviously a boy."

"It seems we were the victims of a little identity prank," Lazar held up a small stack of papers he was holding, that self-explained the little mix-up.

"Twins!"

"Twins."

* * *

Zixzix: _"The D-tector wasn't picking up any ener-d from the kid dueling. But, I did end up getting a signal. It was coming from this girl in the stands,"_ he showed Goodwin an image of Luna with her friends in the stands, _"Now we just have to push her to her limits."_

Goodwin smiled...

* * *

**Duel-Mon Database**

**(1) Summon Reactor-SK**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 5 ATK/2000 DEF/1400

**Attribute: **Dark  
**Description:** The first time a monster(s) is summoned to your opponent's side of the field each turn, inflict 800 points of damage to your opponent. During the Battle Phase of the turn this effect was activated, you can negat the attack of 1 monster your opponent controls. You can send 1 face-up 'Trap Reactor-Y FI', 1 face-up 'Spell Reactor-RE' and this face-up card you control to the graveyard to special-summon 1 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' from your hand, deck, or graveyard.

**(2) Trap Reactor-Y FI**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 4 ATK/800 DEF/1800

**Attribute: **Dark  
**Description:** Once per turn, when your opponent activates a trap card, you can destroy the trap card and inflict 800 points of damage to your opponent.

**(3) Spell Reactor-RE**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 3 ATK/1200 DEF/900

**Attribute: **Dark  
**Description:** Once per turn, when your opponent activates a spell card, you can destroy the spell card and inflict 800 points of damage to your opponent.

**(4) Flying Fortress SKY FIRE**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 8 ATK/3000 DEF/2500

**Attribute: **Wind  
**Description:** This card cannot be normal-summoned or set. This card cannot be special-summoned except with the effect of 'Summon Reactor-SK'. Once per turn, you can send 1 card from your hand to the graveyard to destroy 1 card you opponent controls. Once per turn, during each of your opponent's turns, you can activate 1 of the following effects:

When you opponent normal-summons or special summons a monster, destroy it and inflict 800 points of damage to your opponent.

When your opponent sets a card, destroy it and inflict 800 points of damage to your opponent.

**(5) Morphtronic Celfon**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 1 ATK/100 DEF/100

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:**

While in attack position: Once per turn, you can roll a six-sided die. Reveal cards from the top of your deck equal to the roll and special-summon 1 Level 4 or below 'Morphtronic' monster from among them. ignoring summoning conditions. Shuffle the rest into the deck.

While in defense position: Once per turn, you can roll a six-sided die. Look at cards from the top of your deck equal to the roll, then return then in the same order.

**(6) Morphtronic Boomboxen**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1200 DEF/400

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:**

While in attack position: This card can attack twice during the Battle Phase.

While in defense position: Once per turn, when a face-up 'Morphtronic' monster you control is selected as an attack target, you can negate the attack.

**(7) Morphtronic Datatron**

**Stats:** [Pyro/Effect] Level 3 ATK/1200 DEF/600

**Attribute: **Fire  
**Description:**

While in attack position: Once per turn, you can tribute 1 monster to inflict 600 damage to your opponent.

While in defense position: Once per turn, you can inflict 300 damage to your opponent.

**(8) Gadget Hauler**

**Stats:** [Machine/Effect] Level 6 ATK/1300 DEF/0

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:** Once per turn, you can send any number of 'Morphtronic' monsters from your hand to the graveyard to have this card gain 800 ATK for each.

* * *

**Jason: Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: Looks like today's weather calls of strong winds, with 100% chance of Harpies! How can I fight off a whole army of Harpie Ladies? Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator! **

**Please Review.**


	24. Song of the Sirens

**Same disclaimer applied.**

"Talking"

'Thinking'

_Flashback_

_Distant Communication_

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

After the duel, Leo was walking in the hallway along with his sister Luna, and his friend Dexter.

"Hey, try and cheer up, Leo. It's not like everyone saw you lose."

"Yeah, she's right; 15 million tops."

"Thanks," Leo said sarcastically.

"It's not a lost if you learn something," Yusei was leaning on the wall waiting for them, "Now you know more than you did before. Right, Leo?"

"Yeah, more about losing. I just can't wait to use that in my next duel- -"

"Excuse me!" the sound of high heels on the floor suddenly reached them and they all moved to the wall as Akiza walked past. As she did so, her gaze locked with Yusei's for a moment, each staring into the other's eyes. Then the moment passed and she just kept walking on down the corridor, seemingly oblivious to them.

"What's her problem?" Leo asked.

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 21: Song of the Sirens

* * *

**

The arena was abuzz with excitement. The Duel between Greiger and Leo had left the audience hyped up for more action, more incredible and breathtaking Duels.

"Alright people, listen up!" the MC shouted, "As you've all known before, eight out of the sixteen competitors were selected to compete in the Fortune Cup preliminaries! But that's just for the A-Block! That's right people, the remaining eight will be facing each other head-to-head in this special B-Block event: the Fortune Cup: Wild Card!" the crowds cheered with excitement.

"And now, let's see who's fighting who in the first match!" the tourney board returned onto the screen. And after shuffling the contestants, the preliminary matches were decided:

**Jason Hutchins vs. Sonya Harpe**

**Rico Burst vs. Xiki Nomura**

**Kenichi Matsuda vs. David Carten**

**Divine vs. Katherine Cheshire**

"Now that the tourneys are decided, let the Wild Card commence!" the crowds roared once more.

* * *

**Later…**

Katherine was wandering around the lounge, trying to find where Jason is.

"Hey, Rico, do you know where Jason is? The first match is about to start!"

"He's right over there," Rico pointed to one of the nearby tables where Jason was; already fast asleep on the tabletop. That gave Kat an idea…

Jason felt something rub up against his nose. He shifted his position to regain his comfort. The same thing touched his nose again. Jason fluttered his eyes open to see what's bothering him. The first thing welcoming his sight was a pair of big green eyes.

"Waaah!" Jason practically jumped off his chair as he fell to the floor on his back. What he saw above him was none other that Katherine Cheshire, crouching on top of the table with her eyes meeting his.

"Wakey-uppey, Jason! Your match is starting!" she chirped, "And if you're late you have to forfeit out of the tournament!"

"The tournament… aw, man! Am I next already?" Jason leaped off the floor, "I better get moving!" he ran quickly out the door.

"Don't forget your deck!"

Jason looked back and saw Katherine near the door holding his deck, he went back, retrieved his deck, and continued on his way, "Thanks."

"Good luck, Jason! N-E-K-O, that spells luck!"

* * *

"_Looks like we're up in the first match. You ready?"_

"I don't know… this is kind of different than on stage. I don't know if I could win against this guy,"

"_Don't worry, Sonya; just leave the dueling to me."

* * *

_

"And now, let's get this show on the road!" the MC announced, "Let's meet our first two competitors for the Fortune Cup: Wild card! Introducing our first competitor, the Songster of the Storm, the Guardian of the Gale, you all know her as the top teen idol of New Domino City! Give it up for ever-loving Sonia Harpe!"

A hydraulic platform rose to reveal a girl about 16-17 years old. She wore a hot-pink short-sleeved shirt with tight aqua-blue jeans. Her long crimson hair was tied back into two pigtails. The crowds cheered her and chanted her name. Ever her fan club gave her the most support.

"Challenging her, a lone individual who venture from the Satellite for reasons unknown, Jason Hutchins!" as soon as Jason rose to the arena, the crowds gave him the complete opposite:

* * *

"You don't stand a chance!"

"Why don't you go back to the dump where you belong?"

"Who do you think you are coming here, Satellite!"

* * *

Jason took in all their verbal abuse, he didn't like it one bit.

* * *

Back in the lounge, Kat was watching the whole thing on the couch, "I don't get it! Why are they being so mean to Jason?"

"Do they need a reason not to? He's a Satellite," someone chuckled. Katherine looked back to see a man with green hair and a purple stuffed collar suit leaning against the couch, "And if you were smart, you would too."

"And who do you think you are?"

"Just a guy who's about to watch this Satellite get served," he looked up at the screen, "A princess against the pauper; this won't take long."

* * *

Both duelists stared each other eye-to-eye. Sonia's emerald eye's give off an ominous radiance on Jason.

"Alright, let's get this duel started," the MC shouted, "Player, activate your duel disks!" Jason used the golden disk Rico gave him. Sonia's disk is quite different. The emerald duel disk had a blue gem in the center; the card platform was designed as green eagle's wing, which activated, retracted into three separate blades, with two card zones on two wings, and the last one.

"Let's duel!"

**Jason: 4000**

**Sonya: 4000**

"I'll start things off," Sonia called, "And for my first move, I'm summoning (1) Harpie Lady 1(1300/1400) in ATK mode!" from the ground came a half-bird, half-human creature with light blue skin, dark-blue wings, fiery red hair and a blue leotard, "And thanks to her special ability, she gives 300 ATK points to every Wind-Attribute monster I have on the field!" the harpy screeched as her power went up.

Harpie Lady 1: (ATK: 1600)

"And next I'll play not one, but two Elegant Egotist spell cards!" Harpie was enveloped in a column of energy, and her shadow became three, "Welcome to the field, Harpie Ladies number 2 and three!" when the light vanished, she was accompanied by two more harpies, one had spiky blue hair while the other had short orange hair. The both powered up with Harpie's special ability.

Harpie Lady 2/3: (ATK: 1600)

MC: "Incredible! On her first move, Sonya has brought out not one Harpie Lady, but the entire basic set! Let's see if our songstress can keep this up!"

* * *

"Go get 'im, Sonya!"

"You can do it!"

"Knock that Satellite out of the arena!"

* * *

"Also, I'm playing the field spell, Harpies' Hunting Ground!" the ground rumbled and five long stone mountains erected from the arena. The three harpies flew up and landed at the center three, "And just like my Harpies' ability, this field spell gives my monsters a power boost, only it gives all winged-beast types 200 ATK and DEF points.

Harpie Lady 1/2/3: (ATK: 1800/DEF: 1600)

"And that's not all; I activate the Aero Nail spell card, and equip it to Harpie Lady 1," Harpie was soon equipped with a gauntlet with a long talon-like blade sticking out of it, "And in addition of having this new accessory grants her 300 extra ATK points."

Harpie Lady 1: (ATK: 2100)

"Finally, I place one card face-down and end my turn," a reverse card appeared in front of her.

MC: "After emptying out her entire hand, Sonya has gained a strong advantage! Let's see how Jason responds to her combo!"

"Here goes," Jason started his turn, "Since you have monsters on your field and I don't, I can summon Big-Piece Golem in ATK mode without releasing another monster!" instantly, a large craggy grey golem with short stubby limbs appeared (ATK: 2100), "I hope your harpies had home-training, Sonya, because with the help of my golem, they're about to get grounded!"

* * *

"Say what?"

"That didn't make sense at all!"

"Booo! Bad joke!"

* * *

"Um, moving along, I activate Double summon, so I can summon a new monster: Ghost Gardna!" the spectral shield appeared in a blue aura (DEF: 1900), "Finally, I'll set three face-downs and call it a turn."

"Is that it? With moves like that, this match shouldn't take long," Sonya started her turn, "Here's how to make a good combo; I play the spell Card of Sanctity!" both players drew six cards, "Then, I play my face-down card, Icarus Attack! See, by releasing a monster on my field, this trap destroys two cards on your field," Harpie Lady 2 rose to the sky, higher and higher until she was out of view. Then, a huge bolt of lightning struck down and obliterated Ghost Gardna, as well as one of Jason's face-downs.

"Next, I summon (4) Harpie Queen(1900/1200) to the field in ATK mode!" from out of the skies, another harpy with long, green hair in a blue leotard descended onto one of the mountains (ATK: 2400), "And now the second effect of Harpies' Hunting Ground activates: You see, whenever a Harpie monster is summoned to the field, it can destroy one of your spell or trap cards!" the queen blasted a shriek of sonic sound. Jason covered his ears as another one of his face-downs were shattered.

MC: "Sonya's picking out Jason's cards one-by-one! And with two cards left on his field, it looks like it's all downhill from here!"

"And now, I activate one of my personal favorites: the spell card, Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation!" as if on command, the four Harpies flew in formation creating a flaming bird, "As long as there's a Harpie Lady on my field, I can activate Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation, which destroys all your monsters, and deal damage equal to their ATK points to your life points," the phoenix dove down on the golem, eliminating it from the field.

**Jason: 1900**

**Sonya: 4000**

"Unfortunately, I can't attack on the turn I played Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation, but it's no problem, not as long as I have an entire flock of Harpies on my side."

'She's right,' Jason thought, 'In just a few turns she's brought out a lot of monster cards and taking out my own. How can I use my trap card, I she can just blow them away with that field spell?"

* * *

Person: "See? This Satellite really doesn't have a chance."

Katherine: "This duel isn't over yet, so how would you know?"

Person: "Because a mediocre has-been like him was never made to be a duelist..."

* * *

"Now where were we? ...oh right, it's still my turn. I activate two copies of Double Summon!" Sonya slapped the two spells onto her disk, "This means I can summon two additional monsters to the field! And I couldn't think of anyone better that (5) Harpy Girl(500/500)..." a younger harpie with pink wings and blonde hair appeared, defending behind a blue aura (DEF: 700), "and (6) Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon(1200/600)!" a petite, hot-pink dragon appeared with a golden collar and chain around its neck, "And his special ability doubles his ATK and DEF whenever there's a Harpie on my field (ATK: 1200-2400-2600-2900/DEF: 600-1200-1500). Also, you can't attack another Harpie on the field. And finally, once a turn, it can destroy one card on the field!" the dragon fired a burning fireball aimed directly for Jason's face-down.

"Ain't gonna happen, Sonya! I activate that face-down!" Jason revealed his reverse card, "See, thanks to my Overworked trap card, I can destroy every monster whose ATK has been altered! And since each and every one of your monsters got a power boost thanks to your Harpie Lady and your field spell..." his trap fired five separate beams of purple energy, each destroying each of Sonya's monsters.

MC: "Unbelievable! With just one trap card, Jason has officially grounded Sonya's sinister siren serenade! Once again with no cards in her hand, it looks like the tables have turned for our favorite idol!"

"That's right! It's time to end this!" Jason started his turn, "First off, I play the Premature Burial equip spell and bring back Big-Piece Golem!" Jason's golem returned from the graveyard, "Next, I summon the tuner monster, (7) Comrade Swordsman of Landstar!" from a blue portal came the Swordsman of Landstar, pumped up and raring to go (ATK: 900), and now I tune my Golem with Comrade Swordsman of Landstar, in order to Synchro-Summon Colossal Fighter!" the two monsters began the synchro process.

"Divested stars form a timid soul, discovered in the darkest reaches! Unlock the gates to remove the shadows, and create the titan it will become, on its long-forgotten journey! Synchro Summon! Colossal Fighter, Accelerate!"

The colossal warrior appeared (ATK: 3000), "And to top it off, I'll equip him with Megamorph, doubling Colossal Fighter's ATK power!"

Colossal Fighter: (ATK: 5800)

"Alright, Colossal Fighter, end this! Go, Colossal Comet!" the fighter charged in, and threw an energy-charged punch at the singer.

**Jason: 1900**

**Sonya: 0**

The audience gasped as they witnessed this almost-impossible feat that Jason just made.

MC: "This duel is over! In just one punch, Jason managed to pull a one-hit-KO with Collosal Fighter! Let's give a big round of applause for Jason Hutchins!"

Jason felt proud of himself. It appears he would be able to get the respect we wanted from them... but he got just the opposite.

* * *

"I don't believe it! This guy must've cheated!"

"Your cards were marked! I just know it!"

"Who do you think you are, ganging up on a defenseless girl like that, Satellite!"

* * *

Katherine: "I don't get it! Jason won the duel fair-and-square! So why don't they like him!"

Person: "(chuckle) that's because it's not about the duel. This is a battle of social status. When low and high classes pit against each other, the higher class will win every time-"

_"Just what's wrong with you people!"

* * *

_

The crowd instantly silenced as they heard the sound of Sonya's voice.

"I don't know if you forgotten, but Jason Hutchins isn't someone you should look down on!"

The audience murmured, wondering what she was talking about.

"Sure he's a Satellite, but so what? He's a good duelist too. So why? And why do you cheer on me as much as you abused him? Is that because I'm some sort of celebrity?"

The crowds silenced and waited and listened to Sonya's speech.

"The whole reason I became a singer in the first place is to send a message with my words. ...but I guess the message didn't reach out as much as I hoped. I wanted people to get along with each other, not because of who they are or what they do," Sonya place a hand over her heart, "It's who they are on the inside that matters. Just because i'm famous doesn't mean I can't live a normal life too. But it seems everyone else doesn't see the world like that. So let today's match teach you that this world isn't all black and white, but shades of grey," and with that, Sonya walked away, off the arena.

Almost instantly afterward, the entire crowd cheered and applauded, heartfelt at Sonya's touching words. Jason was smitten as well.

MC: "Alright, this Wild Card match ends with Jason proceeding to the semi-finals! Coming up next is the second match of the A-Block Cup! Stay tuned!"

* * *

**Duel-Mon Database**

**(1) Harpie Lady 1**

**Stats:** [Winged-Beast/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1300 DEF/1400

**Attribute: **Wind  
**Description:** This card's name is always treated as "Harpie Lady". All WIND monsters gain 300 ATK.

**(2) Harpie Lady 2**

**Stats:** [Winged-Beast/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1300 DEF/1400

**Attribute: **Wind  
**Description:** This card's name is always treated as "Harpie Lady". Negate the effects of any Flip Effect Monsters that this monster destroys by battle.

**(3) Harpie Lady 3**

**Stats:** [Winged-Beast/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1300 DEF/1400

**Attribute: **Wind  
**Description:** This card's name is always treated as "Harpie Lady". Your opponent's monster that battles with this card cannot declare an attack for your opponent's next 2 turns.

**(4) Harpie Queen**

**Stats:** [Winged-Beast/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1900 DEF/1200

**Attribute: **Wind  
**Description:** You can discard this card to the Graveyard to add 1 "Harpies' Hunting Ground" from your Deck to your hand. This card's name is treated as "Harpie Lady" while it is on the field or in the Graveyard.

**(5) Harpie Girl**

**Stats:** [Winged-Beast/Effect] Level 2 ATK/500 DEF/500

**Attribute: **Wind

**(6) Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon**

**Stats:** [Dragon/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1200 DEF/600

**Attribute: **Wind  
**Description:** This card gains effects based on the number of "Harpie" monsters you control (other than "Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon" and "Harpie's Brother"). ● 1+: Your opponent cannot select "Harpie" monsters you control as attack targets (except "Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon" and "Harpie's Brother"). ● 2+: Double the original ATK and DEF of this card. ● 3+: Once per turn, you can destroy 1 card your opponent controls.

**(7) Comrade Swordsman of Landstar**

**Stats:** [Warrior/Effect] Level 3 ATK/400 DEF/1200

**Attribute: **Earth  
**Description:** All Warrior-Type monsters you control gain 400 ATK.

* * *

**Yusei: Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: I guess this match pits Akiza against some knight. Could she really ave super powers? Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator!**

**Please Review.**


	25. Wrath of the Rose

**Same disclaimer applied.**

"Talking"

'Thinking'

_Flashback_

_Distant Communication_

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

In Goodwin's private box, Randsborg had just entered.

"Sir Randsborg, reporting for duty as you requested, my liege," he said.

Lazar gave a soft chuckle, "I told you he'd be perfect for this duel," he said to Rex. "The costume might be a little melodramatic, but he said he wouldn't duel without it."

"Is it true that I am to duel an opponent of thine female persuasion, your highness?" Randsborg asked Rex. "Chivalry forbids this! The fairer species is too weak, my lord!"

"What if I told you she was the Black Rose?" Goodwin asked. "It is believed that her cards wield a power so real that they have know to come to life."

"I see, a witch!" Randsborg exclaimed.

"Are you afraid, Sir Ransborg?" Lazar teased, "You know, if you don't fulfill your obligation, well, you'll might find yourself dueling at a renassiance fair."

"My word is my bond," Randsborg saluted, "I will engage this Black Rose in battle!"

"Just don't go easy on her in the arena. Push her to exhaustion. We must see if she has the Mark of the Dragon."

"Fear not, this she-creature is no match for Gil de Randsborg," He drew his sword and raised it towards the ceiling. "On my sword, I swear the Black Rose will taste defeat!" he left the room, with his cape waving out in the air.

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 22: Wrath of the Rose

* * *

**

Meanwhile, back at the lounge, we meet one of the many participants of the Fortune Cup, Ms. Akiza Izinski, who was looking over her dueling deck.

"Akiza! Hey, Akiza, where are you?" The person calling her was none other than Rico Burst, "There you are! You match is about to start!"

"I know," Akiza said without remorse. She gathered her deck and walked out the door.

"I'll be right here cheering you on, Sis! ...right?"

"...I'll see you after the duel," Akiza continued on her way, leaving Rico behind.

* * *

"Welcome back! The next duel is about to begin!" the MC yelled. "Now, entering the arena, a knight in shining armor, it's the one, the only, Gill de Randsborg!"

Randsborg rose into the arena on a hydraulic platform, still clad in his plate armor. He drew his sword and raised it to the heavens.

"Good people of New Domino, thou shall knowest mine blade and mine Deck from the attack thee shall witness!" he announced. The crowd cheered.

"While we wait for a Shakespearean scholar to translate that, lets get ready for his opponent!" the MC yelled.

* * *

In the stands, Leo, Luna, Dexter, Yanagi and Tanner were looking at Randsborg in absolute amazement.

Yanagi: "This guy can't be serious."

Tanner: "Don't get me started on that big faker. I wore that same costume last Halloween."

* * *

"Now entering the arena, his opponent, with a record of… well, it appears we don't have _any _records for her! But we _can _say she's… um… uh… _are you saying we have no information for her?_" The MC hissed the last part to a staff member beside him. "Uh… well, New Domino City, let's hear it for Ms. Akiza Izinski!"

Akiza rose up on a hydraulic platform exactly as Randsborg had, but she was completely silent, with her eyes fixed on Randsborg.

* * *

Leo: "I have the strangest feeling like I've seen her before."

Dexter: "You mean in the hallway?"

Leo: "No! Before that! Get with it, Dexter!"

Suddenly, Luna cried out.

"What's wrong?"

Luna: "It's her deck... it's like I can feel it in pain..."

* * *

Elsewhere in the stadium, on the central level of the stands, a man in a brown trench coat stood, his crimson red hair styled in strange bangs that partially covered the left side of his face. 'Show them what you're made of,' his lips curved into a smirk.

* * *

''So this be thy opponent I am to battle?' Ransborg thought, "You'll find no mercy here, sorceress, but you will find defeat!" the golden shield on his left arm swung open to reveal a duel disk panel. Akiza's disk was magenta with a blue gem in the center.

"Let's duel!"

**Akiza: 4000**

**Randsborg: 4000**

"Ready, fair maiden?" Randsborg started his turn, "Behold! I summonith the (1) LV3 Masked Knight(1500/800)!" In a flash of light, a short grey armoured knight appeared, plate ornamented with gold, steel wings attached to the armor and a sword sheathed across his back (ATK: 1500), "The shall suffer this, its ability most special!" A blast of golden aura fired from Masked Knight LV3's helmet crest, striking Akiza, who didn't even flinch, "Thou loseth 400 points."

**Akiza: 3600**

**Randsborg: 4000**

"Forth with, I shall call upon thine spell, Level Up!" Randsborg announced, playing the spell card, "Ye has served noblely, but be banished to thy yard of grave, for thy brother of arms shall be summonith: (2) Masked Knight, Level the Fifth(2300/1300)!" His Masked Knight LV3 started to grow taller and thinner, his armor becoming more ornate and noble (ATK: 2300). The new Masked Knight LV5 roared a battle cry as it glared at Akiza through the eye slits in its helmet, "And thus, like his comrade, its ability most special! Thou shall feel the sharp sting that forces the line against thee! Life points most foul, begone!" His Masked Knight fired an even stronger blast from his crest, but once again Akiza took it without flinching.

**Akiza: 2600**

**Randsborg: 4000**

"I shall yield with a face-down!" a reverse card appeared in front of him, "Thine turn."

* * *

**Meanwhile in the lounge...**

Katherine: "That guy talks funny."

Ken: "That's 'cause he's using some Old English accent to go with that stupid outfit. C'mon! Even I could look good in that without it! Though I must admit he's good. Randsborg's taken out almost half of that girl's life points in one turn! I can't wait to see what else he's got in store."

Rico: "We haven't seen Akiza duel yet. She could turn this around just as easily."

* * *

MC: "Can our mysterious duelist come back from this? Does she have a chance? Will I understand anything Sir Ransborg says in this duel?"

* * *

From Goodwin's private box, he and Lazar watched the duel.

Lazar: "It's all going according to our plan, Sir Randsborg will push her to her limits, and then we'll know for certain if she's a signer."

* * *

"Fear not, Maiden of the Darkness; defeat is soon," Randsborg stated. Still Akiza remained silent, "A silent tongue? Or has the viper taketh hold of thee?"

"No, I'm getting tired of having to listen to your bad accent," Akiza replied as she slapped a card onto her disk. It was a mass of twisted, thorny ivy that appeared before her (DEF: 1200)

* * *

Tanner: "She just played (4) Wall of Ivy(300/1200)."

Dexter: "It's a great card if you're looking for some DEF."

* * *

"And next I'll play a spell card: Seed of Deception! And with this, I get to summon another level-2 or lower plant monster from my hand. Or in some words that you can understand, 'thou art about to be royally played!'" a gnarled, twisted mass of roots with two bitter green eyes glaring from it appeared in a flash of light (DEF: 0), "Now that (5) Copy Plant(0/0) is on my field, it can power up to the level of a monster on your field. And I can't think of anyone perfect than your level-5 knight!" Copy Plant rearranged its vines so it forms the shape of the knight, and in a glow of light, it took in all of its details (Lv: 5) "This fair maiden would like to thank you for all your help."

* * *

Rico: "5 and 2... that could only mean one thing…"

Katherine: "You have any idea what she's summoning?"

Rico: "...something I thought she wouldn't play here."

Yanagi: "I'm not sure I'm following what she's doing, Tanner."

Leo & Dexter: "She's gonna synchro-summon!"

Yanagi: "What?"

* * *

"I fear you not, milady!" Randsborg growled.

"You should, because now I'm tuning my Copy Plant with Wall of Ivy!" Copy Plant rose into the skies and descended as 5 glowing rings that encircled Wall of Ivy, reducing them to 2 glowing stars as Akiza fiercely chanted:

"_Chilling flames engulf the entire world. Pitch-dark flower, set into bloom! Synchro Summon!"_

The stars aligned within the rings and the entire Synchro Summon exploded into a pillar of fiery purple light behind Akiza, "It's time you stopped playing with plastic swords and dice, Ransborg! Now I summon to the field, (6) Black Rose Dragon(2400/1800)!" her arm up towards the heavens as black writhing thorny vines ripped from the Synchro Summon, lashing like whips as a terrible howl of fury and power rent the skies. The pillar of purple light faded away to a giant red and black dragon.

It was immense, easily on par with Stardust Dragon and Red Dragon Archfiend in size, its body black and serpentine, scales separated into segmented ridges of armored flesh. Its wings were formed of blood-red rose petals, and the same petals wrapped around its midriff where wings met body. Its head was thorn-shaped, with blazing crimson eyes and a fearsome maw. A majestic plume of rose petals crowned its skull, and the dragon landed on great legs ending in crimson talons, howling again as its vine-tails lashed insanely (ATK: 2400). Its screech created a giant wind storm inside the arena.

"Tis true! Thous beith the Black Rose!" Randsborg exclaimed, "Stay back!"

* * *

"Black...Rose?"

"It is! Look! Only Black Rose can summon Black Rose Dragon!"

* * *

Lazar: "(chuckle) Well, she didn't waste time, did she?"

Back at the lounge, Yusei clutched his arm as it was coursed with waves of pain. That reminded him of what happened yesterday at the Street Duels...

_**Flashback...**_

_The Black Rose looked at them through the eye slits in her mask, her eyes fueled with malice. They widened the instant she saw the Marks of the Dragon, "Your arms!" she gasped, "You also have marks!"_

_"We do..." Yusei said, stepping closer. She recoiled._

_"Stay away from me!" she cried. She drew a card from her deck and slashed it onto her disk…_

_"Oh, no way! Yusei, get down!" Jason yelled, tackling his friend to the ground as white light and energy exploded from around the Black Rose, obscuring her from view and tossing everyone back like storm-blown leaves. The dust cloud was ripped apart by the wind and blast, and the whole world went white for eternal seconds before the blast faded._

_As Jason and Yusei looked back, the Black Rose was gone. She had used the cover of the blast to flee._

_**...End Flashback.**_

"I've seen that dragon before."

"Then congratulation," Greiger came over to where Yusei was sitting, "Most who come face-to-face with it never duel again. They say the Black Rose Dragon's wrath could cause destruction on the world."

* * *

"This is so cool!"

"This is the best Fortune Cup ever!"

"My friends are gonna be so jealous I'm here!"

* * *

"Fear not!" Randsborg announced, "Thy knight shall do battle with the great beast! And thy Dark Maiden shall be made to pay for this!" 'Unless my eyes decieve me, she knows not of thy face-down, Sakuretsu Armor waiting to strike.'

Akiza kept watching him.

"Your eyes do vex," he said.

"I'll take that as a compliment, But in case it wasn't, I should let you know something: Black Rose Dragon takes out _all_ your cards, Randsborg!"

"What?"

"Go, Black Rose Gale!"

Akiza's dragon flapped its wings and roared, unleashing a howling storm of gale-force proportions within the arena. All the cards on the field instantly shattered under the force of the storm, including Akiza's own Black Rose Dragon.

MC: "I don't believe it! An incredible tornado has struck inside the arena!"

As soon as the storm died down, Randsborg lowered his shield, "So thou can command the wind."

"Amongst other things; Watch as I play my field spell, Black Garden!" as soon as she played her spell card, vines erupted from under her feet, rapidly growing into a great dome of rose plants around them, "It's your move, Randsborg." she ends her turn with a reverse card.

"My turn," the knight called, "I activateth thine spell, The Warrior Retuneth Alive! It has the power to retuneth a warrior from the dark veil of the grave." Masked Knight LV3's card slid from his Graveyard and Randsborg added it to his hand, "Masked Knight, Level the Third, rejoin thy battle; you shall fight again!" The Masked Knight LV3 reappeared (ATK: 1500). Suddenly, the vines of Black Garden shot inwards, constricting around him (ATK: 750), "What be this?"

"This 'be' the power of my Black Garden," Akiza explained, "As long as we're in this greenhouse, your monster's ATK points are cut in half, and a rose token blooms on my field. I'm sure a knight like you could handle a few thorns. Watch her beauty bloom!," On cue, a crimson rose plant sprouted before her, humanoid in shape (ATK: 800), "And be sure to take in the sweet smell of, my success," she chuckled as she plucked a rose from the vines of the field spell and took in its aroma.

MC: "With Masked Knight's ATK points sliced in half, Sir Ransborg can't get close to the Black Rose!"

'My monster's ATK points matter not,' Ransborg thought, 'Thy monster can still falter my knight's ability most special.' "You Yield?"

"Not with my Doppelganger trap card in play!" Akiza revealed her reverse card, "As long as I control this face-up card, if I take damage from a monster effect, you take the same amount of damage. Take that, you big tin can!" the trap card lifted up and a volley of flowers tore from it, striking Randsborg, who groaned as he endured the storm. As it ended, a bloody line was visible across his cheek, the effect had cut him!

**Akiza: 2200**

**Randsborg: 3600

* * *

**

Leo: "His face!"

Dexter: "She gave him a scar!"

Tanner: "I guess the Black Rose really does have special powers."

Yanagi: "Lets go home! If she can do that to him, imagine what she can do to us!"

* * *

Randsborg pulled a handkerchief from under his armor and calmly wiped away the blood, "Tis but a mere scratch. Her powers scare not this brave warrior, but heir witch shall pay!"

Akiza's eyes flashed menacingly, "Be careful who you call a witch," she said darkly.

"A threat? Ye shall pay dearly for that! I casteth two cards face-down! Thine turn!"

"I know," Akiza drew, "And for starters I play the spell, Mark of the Rose, which lets me select one monster on your side of the field and take control of it. Masked Knight, what do you think of joining me?" a black rose mark appeared on the knight's forehead and he vanished, reappearing before Akiza in a flurry of rose petals and kneeling as Akiza pocketed Lord Poison. Akiza held out her hand and he took it in his own, gently kissing it before standing and turning to face his former master, whose face was the approximate shade of beetroot.

* * *

Yanagi: "Oh my, it appears to be quite smitten with her."

* * *

"It looks as though your monster has sworn an allegiance to me. I think its time to show Sir Randsborg the sting of your betrayal!" The Masked Knight leap at Randsborg and brought his sword down on the knight's Duel Disk shield.

**Akiza: 2200**

**Randsborg: 2850**

As Masked Knight LV3 returned to Akiza's field, it was clear that Randsborg was pretty furious, "Thou bewitched the heart of thy noble knight! Thou shall suffer for such insolence!"

"Not before this: I equip the spell Vengeful Servant on my new Masked Knight. So now, when he goes back to your control at the end of my turn, you lose even more life points; one for each of his ATK points!"

"You dare not!"

"Oh no! I do dare! It looks like it's the end of my turn. Masked Knight, why don't you go on home and unleash the true power of Vengeful Servant!" Masked Knight LV3 vanished and reappeared before Randsborg in a flurry of rose petals, "Now strike down his life points!" his eyes flashed and he turned, slashing at Randsborg with his sword.

**Akiza: 2200**

**Randsborg: 1350**

MC: "This girl has thorns! In just one round, she pulled up the root of Ransborg's lead like it was a weed infestation!"

"This girl thou suffer thy wrath with this thy trap card, thy Level Change!" Randsborg revealed his reverse card, "This turn has not finished as of yet, Black Rose! For thy traitorous Masked Knight Level the Third shall be sacrificed to thy yard of grave, so that a far more nobler warrior shall take thine place! Masked Knight, Level the Fifth, returnith to thy battle, thy brave warrior!" Masked Knight LV3 dissolved into golden dust, as well as its two equip spells, so it can reform into Masked Knight LV5 (ATK: 2300 - 1150).

MC: "Sir Randsborg has cracked the Black Rose's combo! This is anyone's duel, now!"

"It appears that you forgot about Black Garden," Akiza said, "For every monster you summon, its ATK points are cut in half. and not only that, I'll also be getting a Rose Token," another Token bloomed.

"Sorceress! You dare enchant thine monsters with thine spells? Thy garden be no Eden, but shall fall the same!" Randsborg started his turn, "Now my knight, you have earned promotion for brave service against thy most wicked opponent!"

MC: "He's right: thanks to Masked Knight's special ability, he upgrades from Lv5 all the way to (4) Lv7(2900/1800)!"

Masked Knight LV5 began to grow in size, its muscles bulging out. His Knight stepped forwards, now even taller and more imposing than ever (ATK: 2900).

"Black Garden, do your thing!" Akiza's field spell ensnared the new knight with its thick vines(ATK: 1450), and another Rose Token appeared.

* * *

Greiger: "Impressive. These Rose Tokens of hers can't be destroyed in battle. She has an impenetrable wall. The question is, can she hold out? Even that pretty garden can't hold Ransborg forever. I'm afraid it's only a matter of time before that Black rose gets clipped."

Rico: 'If only you knew what she's really capable of...'

* * *

"Foul she-creature! Thou hath drenched thou arena in dark foliage, ye has seduced my knights, but now, thy dark deck shall fall before thy Masked Knight! Behold, thy Glory Shield!" a glowing crystal shield appeared on the knight's arm, "With it, thy Masked Knight be impervious to any of thy bewitching spells."

* * *

Tanner: "Nice move. And now when Randsborg decides to bring in the big blades, and attack with Masked Knight, Black Rose can't use any of her spell cards or traps."

Dexter: "And if it does damage, it destroys a card. Maybe Black Rose isn't so powerful after all."

* * *

"Masked Knight, unleash thy power amongst the darkest of monsters: the Tokens of Rose! Cry havoc and strike down thy maiden's life points!" the Knight charged and cleaved into one of the Rose Tokens. Akiza didn't even wince as the blade cut into her.

**Akiza: 1550**

**Randsborg: 1350**

MC: "And Randsborg brings the hammer down (or should I say sword), as Akiza takes a big hit! Black Rose is starting to wilt! A few more attacks like that and she'll be checking the Want Ad! Does anyone need a gardener?"

"And now thy Glory Shield's effect destroyith thy Doppelganger!" the shield flashed and Doppelganger shattered, "Masked Knight, unleash thine effect most special!" Masked Knight LV7 fired the strongest blast yet, inflicting 1500 points of damage to Akiza, but still she didn't flinch.

**Akiza: 50**

**Ransborg: 1350**

MC: "Only 50 life points left? This duel is all but over! It's a forth encore! It's a party with no music! It's the closing credits!"

* * *

Greiger: "So do you think this is over?"

Yusei: "Not a chance... she's just getting started."

Greiger: "And why do you think that? You know her? Some ancient, mystical bond?"

* * *

"Thine turn!" Randsborg ended, "And any last words, fair maiden? Or shall you not say another? Ha!"

"...yeah, I got some last words! This duel is over!"

"Liar!"

Akiza started her turn.

'You have lost already, my dear,' Randsborg thought, "I seeith thy cards as if they be mine: you shall release your Tokens of Rose, hoping against hope to summon a creature. And that shall be your undoing. For once summoned, thy Black Garden will afford me a Token of Rose! You shall attack, and you shall fail, for you have no idea what lies beneath thy card most face-down,' he glanced at his reverse card, 'Like all duelists who battled before me, you have no mind for strategy! Waiting for you is my Martyr's Flag. A spell most simple, true, but it shall double thy ATK points of thy Masked Knight. You shall taste the agony of defeat, and learn not to trend here in my arena!"

"So what to do..." Akiza wondered aloud, "I think I'll destroy my Black Garden," the garden suddenly rumbled and shattered, along with all three Rose Tokens.

"What is this? Some trick of some sort?"

"Trick, no; strategy, yes. See, you have to look beyond the beauty of my roses. By destroying Black Garden and my Rose Tokens, I get to summon a new monster, one that's in my graveyard; as long as its ATK is equal to the total ATK of my destroyed tokens."

MC: "Now if my math is correct, and it always is, then Akiza has sacrificed enough monsters to summon..."

"BLACK ROSE DRAGON!" Akiza cried as her dragon reappeared (ATK: 2400). It howled and thrashed, raging against the world.

MC: "Akiza did it! But is it too late? With Black Garden gone, Masked Knight's ATK points go back to their maximum (ATK: 2900)! And if you know anything about fairy tails, when it comes to knights vs. dragons, it never ends well for the dragon!"

* * *

Tanner: "With nothing else on the field, Black Rose can't win this. Too bad, too. I thought she had it."

* * *

"Ye truely are a fool, milady," Randsborg taunted, "Perhaps ye should lay thine cards down and tend to thine garden. Green thumb you have not when it comes to dueling."

* * *

Greiger: "I really hate to admit it, but it looks like this duel's over."

Yusei: "Yeah, but it won't play out like you think."

Greiger: "Say what?"

* * *

Akiza removed Wall of Ivy out of her graveyard slot and Black Rose Dragon glowed with energy. "Now due to Black Rose Dragon's special ability, if I remove a plant-type monster in my graveyard from play, your Masked Knight's ATK points go to zero. Go, Black Binding Bloom!" the wall appeared in illusory form and rose up to Black Rose Dragon's jaws, Akiza's dragon devouring it, before sending its vine-tails shooting across the field as it wrapped tightly around Masked Knight LV7 (ATK: 0).

"But... thouest can not do that to me! It be not fair!" Randsborg whimpered, his voice losing its Old English accent, "I spent all year making this costume for this special tournament! I'm not supposed to lose!"

"Well, too bad!" Akiza replied, "So next time you decide to play dress-up, you should realize that it's not what you wear on the outside that makes you who you are, but what's on the inside."

"I wanna go home!" the knight whined, "Take it easy, now!"

"I am taking it easy! Black Rose Dragon, attack!" Black Rose Dragon roared, opening its maw to unleash a gushing jet of flame that enveloped Randsborg and the Masked Knight. The heat and flowers scattered as the audience screamed in horror as they begged for her to stop...

* * *

Lazar: "(chuckle) I think Sir Randsborg went well. Now to check in on Zixzix... So tell us, what did your D-tector see?"

Zixzix: _"Well, um, ...there was no Signer energy."_

Goodwin: "...then keep looking."

* * *

Randsborg gave one last scream of agony as he collapsed, his armour blackened and burned. His knights both burned to ashes before all the other cards on the field faded away. Akiza just stood, staring down at her defeated foe.

**Akiza: 50**

**Randsborg: 0

* * *

**

Yusei clutched at his arm, where his Mark of the Dragon was burning despite not making itself visible.

"I knew she'd win that duel…" he murmured. Rico glanced at him, and then returned his gaze to the image of Akiza on the viewing screen.

"What do you mean?" Greiger asked. "Are you connected somehow?"

"I don't know," Yusei replied. "But there's something between us."

* * *

The man in the trenchcoat smiled at the Black Rose's victory, "Not a bad win, Akiza. But I got a baaad feeling that this fight, is just about to get started. Good luck."

Akiza stood, still staring at the defeated Randsborg, oblivious to the angry shouts of the crowd…

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Masked Knight LV3**

**EARTH/ Warrior/Effect /Level 3/ATK: 1500/DEF: 800**

**Description: Once per turn, you can inflict 400 damage to your opponent. If you activate this effect, this card cannot attack this turn. During your Standby Phase, send this face-up card to the Graveyard to Special Summon 1 "Masked Knight LV5" from your hand or Deck.**

**(2) Masked Knight LV5**

**EARTH/ Warrior/Effect /Level 5/ATK: 2300/DEF: 1300**

**Description: Once per turn, you can inflict 1000 damage to your opponent. If you activate this effect, this card cannot attack this turn. During your Standby Phase, send this face-up card to the Graveyard to Special Summon 1 "Masked Knight LV7" from your hand or Deck.**

**(3) Masked Knight LV7**

**EARTH/ Warrior/Effect /Level 7/ATK: 2900/DEF: 1800**

**Description: This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card cannot be Special Summoned except by the effect of "Masked Knight LV5". Once per turn, you can inflict 1500 damage to your opponent.**

**(4) Wall of Ivy**

**EARTH/ Plant/Effect /Level 2/ATK: 300/DEF: 1200**

**Description: FLIP: Special Summon 1 "Ivy Token" (Plant-Type/EARTH/Level 1/ATK 0/DEF 0) in Defense Position to your opponent's side of the field. When this Token is destroyed, its controller takes 300 damage.**

**(5) Copy Plant**

**WIND/ Plant/Effect /Level 1/ATK: 0/DEF: 0**

**Description: Once per turn, you can select 1 face-up Plant-Type monster on the field to have this card's Level become equal to the selected monster's Level, until the End Phase.**

**(6) Black Rose Dragon**

**FIRE/ Dragon/Effect /Level 7/ATK: 2400/DEF: 1800**

**Synchro Requirements: 1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters**

**Description: When this card is Special Summoned, you can destroy all cards on the field. Once per turn, by removing from play 1 Plant-Type monster from your Graveyard, select 1 monster your opponent controls. That monster's ATK becomes 0 until the End Phase and can be switched to face-up Attack Position.

* * *

**

**Rico: Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: Now's the time to show off my true deck! I just hope it can stand against Nomura's Twilight monsters. Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator!**

**Please Review.**


	26. Chaos in Scrapmetal

**Same disclaimer applied.**

"Talking"

'Thinking'

_Flashback_

_Distant Communication_

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

Randsborg had been carried out of the arena by a team of paramedics, while Akiza had left of her own accord, walking away into the tunnels, ignoring the jeers and angry shouts of the crowds.

Now it was time for the second match of the B-Block.

"Everybody listen up!" the MC announced. "Following that incredible Duel between the Golden Knight and Black Rose, we now have our second duel of the Fortune Cup Wild Card, Rico Burst against Xiki Nomura!"

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 23: Chaos in Scrap-metal

* * *

**

Back in the lounge, Rico was just looking over his cards until Katherine came by.

"Hey, Rico! Your first match is starting!"

"I know! And I can't wait to get in that arena!" he picked up his deck and started his way out, "Are you gonna watch from here?"

"Mmhm, and I'll make sure Jason and Ken watch too! Now get out there!"

Rico grinned as he rushed out the door. But before he could reach the exit, some unknown force pushed him to the ground.

"Owww, hey, what was that?" he got up and saw that it was someone who pushed him. He watched as that person walked out the door, "Ugh, she could've said 'excuse me'." he groaned.

* * *

"Alright, the Fortune Cup Wild Card Round-2 is about to begin!" the MC shouted, "In this corner, is a child whose skills knows no bounds! Let's give it up for Rico Burst!" the crowd cheered as Rico rose from a platform. He blushed as his own name was being chanted in random areas of the stands.

"And now for his challenger, a rouge duelist from the deepest bowels of the Damon Area! She's the Queen of Mean! The Feminine Fatale! The One who Rules the Undergorund Duels! Let's welcome the Queen of the Twilight, Xiki Nomura!" another duelist rose to the arena. She has short black hair with long dark-blue bands, and has light-blue eyes, light enough to appear transparent at times. She has pale skin and stands at about 5"3'. Her normal outfit consists of black cargo pants, a light blue tank top, a black slightly flared jacket, and combat boots.

"And without any further ado, let the duel commence!"

Rico activated his duel disk and entered his deck, "Good luck, Ms. Nomura."

"Luck is for losers," she scoffed as she entered her deck, "But good luck to you."

"Let's Duel!"

**Rico: 4000**

**Xiki: 4000**

"It's best if I go first," Nomura started her turn, "First off, a little change of scenery: I play the Twilight Zone field spell!" in an instant, an orb appeared from her disk, expanding them until it surrounded the entire field, everything inside the orb has been engulfed in negative light "And next comes my Twilights. I summon to the field, (1) Twilight Enchantress(1800/700) in ATK mode!" from out of a portal, a blond woman appeared wielding a staff with a black gemstone on the tip. Her majestic robes are a black as the night, with sparkling white stars, "Next comes the spell Double Summon, which lets me summon an extra monster this turn. So I welcome (2) Twilight Gardna(400/2000) to the field in DEF mode," a large muscle-bound man appeared kneeling behind a giant shield, which had kanji of both 'light' and 'dark' engraved into it, "And now I'll activate Twilight Enchantress' special ability, which lets me discard a level-4 or lower monster from my hand. If the attribute of that card is a Light-Attribute, I gain 200 life points for each of its level. But if it's a Dark-Attribute, you take the same amount as direct damage," After sending a card to her grave, Xiki was showered by pitch-dark stardust. Meanwhile, Rico was struck by a bolt of dark lightning.

"Hey! What gives?" Rico demanded, "I thought that monster can activate only one effect at a time!"

"By normal means, she could; but while wielding a deck packed with monster of both light and dark, it's a whole-nother story," Nomura explained, "See, the monster I just sent to the graveyard was a monster called Twilight Fiend. And since its attribute are both light and dark, I get to play both effects. And since my fiend is a level-4, you get the same amount of damage, while I get my little boost."

**Rico: 3600**

**Xiki: 4800**

"Then I lay a card face-down and end my turn, but not before I activate the effect of my Twilight Zone. During the End Phase, I can remove cards from my deck equal to the number of monsters on my field. Unfortunately, I take 400 points of damage per card if they aren't Light of Dark monsters," Nomura picked up two cards and checked them, "Lucky for me, I don't have any," she slid the cards into her graveyard slot, and a shining ball of light appeared. I created a portal, revealing and strong, anthropomorphic armored wolf wielding a lance, "And did I mention when my (6) Wulf-Lightsworn Beast(2100/300) is sent to the graveyard that way, he can be special-summoned straight to the field."

**Rico: 3200 **

**Xiki: 4800 (32)**

"And before I forget to tell you, my field spell also gives monster with both Light and Dark attributes a 500 point boost," Twilights Enchantress and Gardna each flowed with energy.

Twilight Enchantress: (ATK: 2300/DEF: 1200)

Twilight Gardna: (ATK: 900/DEF: 2500)

MC: "In just one round, the Queen of the Twilight took a huge lead in life points, and summon not one, not two, but three monsters on the field! Let's see what Rico has to say about it!"

"Alright, it's my move," Rico called, "I summon (9) Scrap Goblin(0/500) in ATK mode!" a bizarre looking machine appeared. It has a camera for a torso, and a sink faucet and nozzle for a head. It also had limbs made of scrapped utensils, "Then I set three cards face-down and end my turn," three reverse cards appeared in front of Rico.

'This kid's left his monster in ATK position. That must be what those two face-downs are for,' Nomura thought, 'This will be more easier than thought.' "If you're trying to spring a trap for me, you're waisting your time, and mine," she started her turn, "So I'm gonna try a different approach. I play the spell Card of Sanctity," Xiki drew six cards while Rico drew four, "Next I release my Lightsworn Beast in order to summon, (3) Twilight Golem(1000/2600) in DEF mode!" the monster Xiki summoned is a creature made of onyx-black stone, in its kneeling position (ATK: 1500/DEF: 3100), "Now I'll activate my Enchantress' special ability again. So by discarding my level-4 Twilight Knight to the graveyard (which, by the way, is both light and dark attribute), you take an additional 800 points of damage," the whole process started all over again, as Rico took the shock from another lightning bolt.

**Rico: 2400 **

**Xiki: 5600 (26)**

"Now I'll play a face-down and let the effect of Twilight Zone take effect," she discarded three cards from her deck, one in which didn't meet the field spell's requirements.

**Rico: 2400 **

**Xiki: 5200 (23)**

"It's my turn now," Rico called...

"But not before I activate my Battle Mania trap card!" Xiki revealed her reverse card, "So that means your monsters have to attack. Let's see how your traps will help you now!"

"That's OK, I can just play my Spirit Barrier!" Rico's continuous trap activated, "With this trap card in play, I won't take any battle damage as long as I have a monster out," a glowing white aura surrounded Rico, "Next I summon (10) Scrap Hunter(1600/400) in ATK mode," the monster Rico summoned was a hybrid tank made of scrap-metal. It weld a chainsaw in its right hand and a spiked club in the left, "And thanks to his special ability, I can destroy another Scrap monster on my field, and discard a tuner monster from my deck!" Scrap Goblin shattered into pixels.

"Hmph, all that scrap-metal must've pierced you skull, kid," Nomura teased, "You just threw away a tuner you already had, just to toss out another from your deck."

"Well, it's no different from your Twilight Zone."

"That's because it's used for a much bigger purpose, unlike anything you monsters can do."

* * *

Katherine: "Oh, that girl! Who does she think she is?"

Ken: "Well, nobody said you can't trashtalk during the duel."

* * *

"Well, how's this for a purpose: let's do battle! Scrap Hunter, attack her Twilight Golem!" Hunter skied towards the colossal golem.

"I don't think so. I activate the Twilight Shield trap card," Xiki activated a reverse card which shows a glowing force-field swirling with light and dark energies, "Now all I have to do, is to discard a Light or Dark monster from my hand to negate your attack, and gain another effect depending on the attribute of that monster" after she discarded a card, the hunter ran smack-dab into the shield, "And it looks as if I removed my Light and Darkness Dragon. So that means your monster's ATK power gets taken out of your life points! As for me... well, you know the rest." Rico got shocked by black lightning while Xiki was rewarded with a shower of black stardust.

**Rico: 800 **

**Xiki: 6800 (23)**

MC: Xiki's taken most of Rico's points like it was Halloween candy! If Rico doesn't do something before his turn is over, it's game over for him!"

"You hear that, twerp? All you dome so far is help me make my life points grow stronger," Nomura taunted, "I wonder how long you can stall while I wait for my Twilight Enchantress to deal the final blow!"

"Not for long! I play my trap card, Limit Reverse!" Rico revealed his second reverse card, "With this in play, I can bring a monster back from the graveyard, as long as it has 1000 or less ATK points. And who better to pick than my Scrap Goblin!" the rusty goblin came back to the field (ATK: 0), "Next, I discard my Noisy Gnat, to increase its level by 1!"

Scrap Goblin: (Lvl: 4)

"And now I tune my Level-4 Scrap Goblin, with my Level-4 Hunter!" the goblin dissolved into four synchro-gates, which descended and encircled the hunter, reducing them to four glowing stars that crashed together and exploded with golden light...

_"Abandoned scraps are a new alloy! Become the mechanized beast united into one! Synchro-Summon! Welcome to surface, (13) Scrap Dragon(2800/2000)!"_

As the light died down, a brand new monster took place. Like the other Scrap monsters, the dragon was made completely of scrap-metal, "And with my dragon's special ability, I can search either field, and destroy one card. So I destroy my face-down from mine, and Twilight Enchantress from yours," after Rico's face-down exploded, the dragon charged up and blasted away the enchantress, causing a giant explosion, "And by the way, the other card I just destroyed was my Dark Coffin. So now you have to choose from two effects: to either discard a card from your hand or a monster on your field. You don't have any cards in your hand, so now..."

"I'll just pick my Twilight Gardna!" Nomura said angrily, and the coffin appeared in from of it. As soon as it opened up, many tendrils of bandages ensnared the gardna in a cocoon of cloth. The monster was pulled into the coffin and it disappeared once again into the ground, "So what if your little toy dragon saved you. I got more monsters waiting in the wings!"

"Well, after I play a couple of face-downs, we'll see what you can do."

"It's about time!" she started her turn, "First I summon (4) Twilight Knight(1600/1550) in ATK mode!" a knight appeared with pitch-black armor with golden lining, an a sparkling shining cape, wielding a sword (ATK: 2100/2050), "Next I pay 800 life points to play Premature Burial and bring back Twilight Gardna," the defender was revived (ATK: 400-900), "Then I tune my Level-4 Knight, with my Level-4 Gardna!" the synchro process began as Xiki chanted:

_"The shrouds of darkness are the eight twilights! Darkness is power, corrupted by solitude! Synchro-Summon!"_

The Synchro Summon was banished in a single moment as a snow-white shadow appeared. The same shadow became apparent in the negative colors of the Twilight Zone as two glowing crimson eyes slowly slipped open, followed by two dark green eyes from what seemed to be the beast's chest, _"Spawned from the darkness, (7) Dark-End Dragon(2600/2100)!"_ The shadow slowly dissolved, revealing Dark End Dragon. It roared as the light struck it and spread its ragged wings, a blue gem gleaming on its forehead, a dark purple one set into its chest above the dark green eyes.

Its body was covered in segmented scales, and its tail was tipped by a barbed spine. It had a demonic visage set in its chest, the mouth filled with triangular fangs and the eyes narrow slits. The majestic dragon raised its head and roared in fury, "Here's where it gets fun: see, once during every turn, I can reduce my dragon's ATK power by 500 points. And in return my monster can destroy any monster on the field, including your Scrap Dragon. Go, Dark Evaporation!" Dark End Dragon's chest mouth opened and a spray of black mist flowed out of it, surrounding the Scrap Dragon. The dragon began to corrode rapidly, being left as a puddle of blue and gold fluid after only a few seconds.

Dark-End Dragon: (ATK: 2100)

"You just triggered Scrap Dragon's special ability," Rico said, "When it's destroyed and sent to the graveyard, I can select a non-synchro Scrap monster in my graveyard and special-summon it to the field-"

"-I guess it's a good time to tell you: when I said Dark-End Dragon _destroys_ a monster, I really meant it just sends it to the graveyard."

MC: "She's right! Since her dragon's effect only removes cards from the field, that makes Scrap Dragon's special ability invalid!"

"And that means another broken toy went to the junkpile."

"Not so fast, Nomura! I'm far from done!"

"Try all you want, kid! Your chances of winning this match are zero!"

Rico growled.

* * *

Ken: "Whoa, just when Rico finally got the upper hand, that Nomura girl's got an even bigger trick up her sleeve."

Katherine: "It's like she knows all of his moves before he makes them!"

Yusei: "(enters) More like she's toying with him."

"Huh?"

"Xiki Nomura had this duel all wrapped up. If she have had brought back Twilight Enchantress instead with Premature Burial, she probalbly would've won the match."

Katherine: "But why didn't she, then?"

Jason: "...Perhaps she wants to see how Rico holds out before she brings out the big guns."

* * *

"And now that you have no more monster on your field, my dragon is free to attack you directly!" Dark-End Dragon fired a blast of dark energy at Rico.

"Not so fast, I activate my face-down, Gravity Bind!" green lines of glowing energy crossed each other to form a barrier around Rico, "Now all monsters level-4 and higher can't attack!"

"I set a card face-down, an that's it," then the Twilight Zone field spell took effect.

**Rico: 800 **

**Xiki: 6800 (20)**

"It's my turn," Rico called, "First I summon (11) Scrap Chimera(1700/500) in ATK mode!" the chimera Rico summoned is a winged, scorpion-tailed lion made entirely of scrap-metal, "And thanks to his special ability, I can summon another Scrap monster back from the graveyard! So welcome back, my (12) Scrap Beast(1600/1300)!" a new Scrap monster appeared from under the arena: a chrome-silver wolf with yellow parts on the shoulders of his arms and legs (ATK: 1600), "And next, I give him an upgrade with the Scrap Polish spell card! By destroying Scrap Chimera monster on my field, all the other gain 1000 ATK points!" Chimera scattered into pieces and equipped onto the Beast: its wings and its mane. Scrap Beast became more sleek and shiny than it ever was.

Scrap Beast: (ATK: 2600)

"Lastly, I play the spell Star Blast! By paying 500 life points, I can downgrade a monster's level by one!" after Rico played his spell card, a red aura surrounded him, indicating him paying his life points.

**Rico: 300 **

**Xiki: 6800 (20)**

Scrap Beast: (Lvl: 3)

"Scrap Beast, show Nomura your new powers and take out that dragon!" Scrap Beast bypassed the protection of the barrier, ready to pounce on Dark-End Dragon.

"I activate my trap card Negate Attack, which blocks off your broken toy's attack. Scrap Beast, heel!" Xiki's trap card created a barrier that blocked the beast's assault.

"Then i'll just play a card face-down and leave it at that," a reverse card appeared in front of Rico. And Scrap Beast lost its additional parts, as well as its luster, and its ATK power.

Scrap Beast: (ATK: 1600)

Nomura started her turn, "Time to show you what happens to those unfortunate enough to challenge me: I summon (5) Twilight Pixie(700/1300) in ATK mode!" the new Twilight monster Nomura summoned was a little gossamer-winged elfin woman with pitch-black skin, wearing a sparkling white bodysuit (ATK: 1200/DEF: 1800), "And by activating her special ability, I can discard one card from my hand and alter my pixie's level by one, depending on the attribute of the card, "And it looks like my Twilight Fiend is both Light and Dark. Let's see... I think I wanna... downgrade my monster's level," Nomura's pixie glowed an eerie blue aura.

Twilight Pixie: (Lvl: 2)

"And now I tune my Pixie with my Golem, in order to synchro-summon the second of the Twilight series," Twilight Pixie flew upwards, becoming two glowing synchro-gates that descended and encircled Twilight Golem, reducing it to six glowing stars. The stars aligned within the rings and connected as black aura that filled the synchro-summon…

_"The sparkles of light are the eight twilights! Light is virtue, enriched by unity! Synchro-Summon!"_

From out of the synchro-summon, a pure white dragon emerged from the synchro-summon, spreading the wings of an angel from its shoulders, serpentine body graceful in the air as golden eyes glared at Nomura's opponent, "_Imbredded from the light, (8) Light-End Dragon(2600/2100)!"_ Light End Dragon gave a roar of holy power as it shone brightly (ATK: 2600).

"Now I activate Dark-End Dragon's special ability, and dispose of that Scrap Beast. Dark Evaporation!" the beast was enshrouded by the same black mist, corroding just as the dragon did, "And that so much ends my turn," the effect of Twilight Zone activated.

**Rico: 300 **

**Xiki: 6800 (17)**

MC: "This is anyone's duel now! Either player has no cards in their hand! And Nomura's got two powerhouse dragon ready to strike! The only thing stopping them is Mr. Burst's Gravity Bind!"

"It's my turn!" Rico called, "I activate the spell Pot of Avarice! Now I return Scraps Beast, Chimera, Goblin, and Hunter, as well as Noisy Gnat, return them to my deck, and then draw 2 cards!" he placed the five cards back into his deck, shuffled them up and drew twice, "Next I play the Lightning Vortex spell card, destroying every monster on your field!" after he discarded the last card in his hand, a tempest of black lightning descended and obliterated both Light an Dark-End Dragon.

"And now I play my second face-down, the trap Call of the Haunted, to bring my Scrap Dragon back from the graveyard!" Rico's scrap-metal dragon returned to the field (ATK: 2800), "So with Scrap Dragon's effect, I'll select one card on my field and destroy it. And I choose my Gravity Bind!" the trap card shattered, "And Nomura, I search the field, and destroy another card; and I choose you Twilight Zone field spell!" the field spell's features vanished into thin air, and all the background colors returned to normal.

"And with that, you have no other cards to protect you! See? As long as I have Scrap Dragon on my side, nothing's impossible!" Rico was waiting for his opponent's response, but the least he expected was a smirk from Nomura, "Hey, what's so funny?"

"So you're a small-fry with a big toy; this is the first time since this duel started that I'm impressed..." she gave her opponent a wicked glare, "but utterly useless! I activate Twilight Zone's effect! When this field spell is removed from the field, I'm aloud to destroy all cards on the field, dealing 100 points of damage for each one!" the Scrap Dragon and Rico's Limit Reverse trap card exploded.

**Rico: 100 **

**Xiki: 6800 (17)**

"And then I can remove both Light-End Dragon and Dark-End Dragon from my graveyard, and call out (14) Twilight Dragon(?/?) from my deck!" shadows of the two dragons appeared above her, and then swirled together to create a dark portal. Out released a giant metallic black-and-white egg. Then it began to unwrap its wings revealing its body, the left side is black with a bat-webbed left wing while the right side is white with angel's right wing. The head shone with an angel's wing on the right and a demon's on the left, with a yellow gemstone on its forehead. The dragon glowed with both light and darkness (ATK: ?).

"Wait! How come its ATK points aren't determined?"

"That's my favorite part! Twilight Dragon's ATK and DEF power are decided by the number of monster with both Light and Dark attributes that are in my grave! And since I have a total of 15 monsters that meet its requirements in my graveyard, he gains 1000 for each one!" shadows of Nomura's monsters appeared, then the were absorbed into the dragon, boosting it with power.

Twilight Dragon: (ATK: 15000)

MC: "Wow-wee! Nearing the end of the road, Miss Nomura has busted out her deck's heavy artillery! There is no was Rico will come back now! This match is over!"

"He's right, Burst!" Nomura started her turn, "Twilight Dragon, end this! Go, Chaos Fury!" energies from the Twilight Dragon created a seal darkness on the ground around Rico's Scrap Dragon and started to shine a sinister light. It started to spin around and affected the it as it instantly exploded, taking the dragon with it. Rico cried out as the rest of his remaining life points were taken along with it.

**Rico: 0 **

**Xiki: 6800 (16)**

MC: "The duel is finished! Miss Xiki Nomura will be advancing to the Wild Card semi-finals!"

Rico knelt to the cold floor as his cards spilled all around him. The first card he saw was his Scrap Dragon. But at the very moment he picked it up, it was snatch away, by none other than Xiki Nomura, "Hey, that's mine! Why'd you do that?"

"That's for making me use Twilight Dragon," Nomura said without remorse, "I didn't need it to beat a hasty-paced wannabe like you, but you wanted to prove how great you were because of your little Scrap Dragon. Well here's a newsflash for you, genius: it's puny and weak! And so are you!"

Rico hung his head low, with tears ready to fall.

"You think you're so skillful. You don't even deserve to be a duelist, let alone be in the same stadium with me. So do us all a favor: go back to playing with your tinker-toys and quit dueling while you know what's good for you. And most importantly, stay out of my way!" Nomura slipped the card into her jacket, "Now if you would excuse me, I have another match to get ready for," she then walked out of the arena, leaving Rico alone.

* * *

Ken: "Ho, boy. Just when I thought he actually had her."

Katherine: "But why did she take Rico's card? That Scrap Dragon must be his favorite monster."

Jason: "I don't know... but I have to find a way to get it back."

Jason, Ken, Katherine, and Yusei watched Rico as he silently cried, not just because he lost, but one of his favorite cards were taken possibly out of his life.

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Twilight Enchantress**

**[Spellcaster / Effect] LV4 ATK/1800 DEF/700**

**Attribute: DARK**

**Translation: This card is also treated as LIGHT. Once per turn, you can discard a Level 4 or lower monster card from your hand to activate the effect that corresponds to the attribute of the discarded monster:**

• **Light: You gain life points equal to the level of the discarded monster x200.**

• **Dark: Inflict damage to your opponent equal to the level of the discarded monster x200.**

**(2) Twilight Gardna**

**[Warrior / Effect] LV4 ATK/400 DEF/2000**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Translation: This card is also treated as DARK. Once per turn during the battle phase, you can change the attack target of a monster controlled by your opponent to this card during the battle phase.**

**(3) Twilight Golem**

**[Rock / Effect] LV6 ATK/1000 DEF/2600**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Translation: This card is also treated as DARK. The battle damage inflicted by this monster is doubled.**

**(4) Twilight Knight**

**[Warrior / Tuner] LV4 ATK/1600 DEF/1550**

**Attribute****: LIGHT**

**Translation: This card is also treated as DARK. Once per turn, you can discard a Level 4 or lower monster card from your hand to activate the effect that corresponds to the attribute of the discarded monster:**

• **Light: Increase this monster's ATK by the level as the discarded monster x100 until the end phase.**

• **Dark: Select a face-up Attack-Positioned monster and change its battle position.**

**(5) Twilight Pixie**

**[Fairy / Tuner] LV3 ATK/700 DEF/1300**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Translation: This card is also treated as DARK. Once per turn, you can discard a Level 4 or lower monster card from your hand to activate the effect that corresponds to the attribute of the discarded monster:**

• **Light: Increase this monster's level by 1.**

• **Dark: Decrease this monster's level by 1.**

**(6) Wulf-Lightsworn Beast**

**[Beast-Warrior / Effect] LV4 ATK/2100 DEF/300**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Translation: This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. When this card is sent from your Deck to the Graveyard, Special Summon it.**

**(7) Dark-End Dragon**

**[Dragon/Synchro/Effect] LV8 ATK/2600 DEF/2100**

**Attribute: DARK**

**Synchro Requirements: 1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner DARK monsters.**

**Effect: Once per turn, you can have this card lose 500 ATK and DEF, and send 1 monster your opponent controls to the Graveyard.**

**(8) Light-End Dragon**

**[Dragon/Synchro/Effect] LV8 ATK/2600 DEF/2100**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Synchro Requirements: 1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner LIGHT monsters.**

**Effect: When this monster battles, you can activate this card's effect at attack declaration. If you do, this card loses 500 ATK and DEF (permanently), and the monster it is battling loses 1500 ATK and DEF until the End Phase.**

**(9) Scrap Goblin**

**Stats: [Beast-Warrior/Tuner] LV3 ATK/0 DEF/ 500**  
**Monster Class-Type: Earth**  
**Description: This card cannot be destroyed by battle. If this Face-up Defense Position card is selected as an Attack Target, destroy this card during the end of the Battle Phase. If this card is destroyed by the effect of a "Scrap" card, you can select 1 "Scrap" monster in your Graveyard except a "Scrap Goblin", and add it to your Hand.**

**(10) ****Scrap Hunter**

**Stats: [Machine/Effect] LV3 ATK/1600 DEF/ 400**  
**Monster Class-Type: Earth**  
**Description: Once per turn, you can select and destroy 1 other "Scrap" monster you control, and send 1 Tuner monster from your deck to your Graveyard.**

**(11) Scrap Chimera**

**Stats: [Beast/Effect] LV4 ATK/1700 DEF/ 500**  
**Monster Class-Type: Earth**  
**Description: When this card is Normal Summoned, you can Special Summon 1 "Scrap" Tuner monster from your Graveyard. This card cannot be used to Synchro Summon a Synchro Monster except a "Scrap" monster and if this card is used as a Synchro Material Monster, all the other Synchro Material Monsters must be "Scrap" monsters.**

**(12) Scrap Beast**

**Stats: [Beast/Tuner] LV4 ATK/1600 DEF/ 1300**  
**Monster Class-Type: Earth**  
**Description: If this face-up Defense Position card is selected as an attack target, destroy this card during the end of the Battle Phase. If this card is destroyed by the effect of a "Scrap" card, you can select 1 "Scrap" monster in your Graveyard except a "Scrap Beast", and add it to your hand.**

**(13) Scrap Dragon**

**Stats: [Dragon/Synchro/Effect] LV8 ATK/2800 DEF/ 2000**  
**Monster Class-Type: Earth**  
**Description: 1 Tuner + 1 or more non - Tuner monsters**  
**Once per turn, activate by selecting 1 card each on you and your opponent's side of the field. The selected cards are destroyed. When this card is destroyed by your opponent and sent to the Graveyard, select and Special Summon 1 non-Synchro "Scrap" Monster from your Graveyard.**

**(14) ****Twilight Dragon**

**[Dragon / Effect] LV10 ATK/? DEF/?**

**Monster Class-Type: LIGHT**

**Translation: This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card cannot be Special Summoned except by the effects of "Twilight Zone", or with its own effect. This card is also treated as DARK. The ATK of this card is equal to the number of monsters with both LIGHT and DARK attributes in your graveyard x1000. This card cannot be targeted by your opponent's card effects. If this card is destroyed and sent to the graveyard by a card effect that doesn't target this card, you can remove both a LIGHT and DARK monster, or a monster with both those attributes from your graveyard to Special Summon it from the graveyard. If this card is destroyed by battle, you can return all monsters in your graveyard and that are removed from play to your deck. And then you gain life points equal to the total level of LIGHT monsters that were returned by this effect x300, and your opponent takes damage equal to the total level of DARK monsters that were returned by this effect x300.

* * *

**

**Yusei: Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: I guess i'm up against Shira in the next match. But who is he behind those robes? Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator!**

**Please Review.**


	27. Beat the Heat

**Same disclaimer applied.**

"Talking"

'Thinking'

_Flashback_

_Distant Communication_

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

After the match, Jason, Ken, Gabriella and Katherine met up with Rico in the hallway to talk about what happened.

"I'm so sorry about what happened out there, Rico," Gabriella said sympathetically.

"Yeah, who would've thought Nomura could be such a jerk," Ken added.

"It's ok," Rico said, "It's just that... who would be mean enough to take something that don't belong to them? I mean, Scrap Dragon was mt favorite card and she just took it from me like she owns it now," he sniffled.

"Well, Jason's gonna get it back for you!" Kat rooted, "Cause with him and Colossal Fighter, Nomura doesn't stand a chance! Right, Jason?"

"Mmhm."

Moments later, someone approached the company and behind Rico. He has spiky black hair, wears a black t-shirt with a black flame on the front, and dark-blue jeans with a chain hanging out of its left pocket. He looked like your average juvenile delinquent, "Hi, I'm here to look after Rico Burst for the day."

"Hey Rico, do you know this guy?" Jason asked.

"Yeah, this is Nathan Turner," Rico hailed, "Nate, these are my new friends, Jason, Ken and Kat."

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you all," Nathan exchanged hands with Jason and Ken, "Since Rico lost earlier, I was told he can't come back to the competitors' lounge. But he can still go to the stands to watch the rest of the tournament. So he'll need someone to look after him."

"Alright, I see," Jason said, "Hey Rico, I guess I'll see you later, then."

"OK, see ya," Rico said before he was led by Nathan across the hall to the stands, with Gabriella following. The others went back to the lounge.

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 24: Beat the Heat

* * *

**

In a garage built into the stadium structure, Yusei was working on his Duel Runner, with Tanner in the garage as well, helping him out.

"What do you know about this Shira?" he asked.

"A couple of fellas I know had some run-ins with the guy a few years ago, in the Underground Duels," Tanner said, "According to them, he wasn't exactly a fan of playing nice. Back then, he used to call himself the Shadow Reaper. Apparently he never takes off those creepy robes of his."

Yusei was holding the Stardust Dragon card.

"So are you planning on using Stardust Dragon?" Tanner asked out of interest.

"I'm saving Stardust for my duel against Jack," Yusei replied, slipping the card in a spare deck box on his belt, where he held his spare cards. "And when I face him, he's gonna wish he never gave it back to me."

* * *

Outside the stadium, a man was sat on his black Duel Runner, which was decorated with flame patterns, and shaped like a chopper. The man was dressed in biker leathers with a flaming skull motif on his jacket, his shoulders crowned by steel spikes. A crooked smirk crossed his lips as he looked up at the stadium.

"Jack Atlas, I can't believe you didn't invite me to your little party," he said in a Texan accent. "Then again, it's gonna be fun crashing it!" He revved his Runner and rode straight for the doors, where he was confronted by Sector Security.

"We got trouble," the Securities called, "Halt! Stop right there!"

"Not!" The rider past a crowd of Securities standing guard, before skidding into a corridor.

The Securities gave chase, but another Security stepped from the tunnel.

"We got this corridor blocked off," he said in a Texan accent. "Head over to the east side!" They obeyed, and the Security smirked, stalking away. It was actually the man they were supposed to be chasing, Hunter Pace.

Pace was the former Turbo Duel Champion, but Jack had come in and kicked him right off that throne. Now Hunter was out for vengence…

He stopped as he heard voices approaching, ducking into a dark side corridor just before Lazar and Shira came into view.

"We need you to get Yusei to get worked up as possible as possible," Lazar said to Shira. "But don't expect this to be easy. This Satellite knows what he's doing. In an off-the-record duel, he defeated Jack Atlas."

"Somebody defeated Jack in a duel?" Hunter gave an exclamation of shock, which Shira apparently heard, as he turned and threw a card into the shadows. It stuck into Hunter's helmet and a rat scurried out.

"You've got rats," Shira commented dryly.

The two walked away, leaving Hunter in the shadows , "So Yusei defeated Jack," he snickered with Shira's card stuck into his stolen Sector Security helmet.

* * *

Later, Leo, Luna, Dexter, Tanner, and Yanagi were at their usual seats...

Leo: "Let's go get some cotton candy or something."

Dexter: "The duel is about to start."

Yanagi: "I can't wait to see Yusei duel!"

Tanner: '...I wonder what Goodwin wants with Yusei. First he lets him and Jason out of the Facility, then he invites them to this tournament. Just seems fishy..."

* * *

"Alright everybody, are you ready?" the MC announced, "It's time for the Fortune Cup's first Turbo Duel! He's the spunky punk trying to get from third to first class; he's the little Satellite who could… I give you, Yusei Fudo!" A plume of smoke exploded from one of the tunnels leading onto the track and Yusei's crimson Duel Runner raced from it, completing a lap of the track as the crowd began to boo.

"Go back to the Satellite, loser!"

"You're way out of your league, slacker!"

* * *

From the tower, Jack watched the next event about to be unfold, 'Let's see if you can make it past your first duel.'

* * *

"Dueling him is the always-mysterious Shadow Reaper himself, Shira!" the MC shouted. A plume of smoke exploded from another tunnel and a second duel runner burst from it, ridden by Shira in his usual cloak. This time, the crowd was cheering.

"Don't let us down, Shira!"

"Show that punk he ain't welcome!"

Shira and Yusei stopped their Runners at the starting line neatly, both ready to Duel.

"With both duelists at the starting line, there's just one thing left to do... Gents, activate Speed World!" the MC yelled. Both Shira and Yusei activated the card in question, and it flashed up on the Runner screens.

_"Duel Mode engaged, Autopilot standing by."_

Speed World expanded from the Duel Runners to coat the arena.

"This is the point-of-no-return! Both duelists activated their Speed World field spell! Now the only spells they can use are speed-spells!"

_"Speed World activated. Ready…"_

Both duelists revved their Runners…

_"Set…"_

Ahead of them the holographic countdown appeared and the lights began to go out.

_"Duel!"_

The countdown shattered as both Duelists shot forwards, a black robe flying back in the wind.

There were dozens of synchronized gasps from the crowd as 'Shira' was revealed as none other than...

"Surprise, surprise!" boomed a laugh, "Didn't expect to see me out her, did ya?"

"This is the mother of all surprises!" the MC yelled. "That's not Shira, that's the former champion! The Mad Biker, the Phantom of Fire, it's... it's Hunter Pace!"

* * *

In Rex's box, Lazar was making a report.

"I'm afraid we have a bit of a situation," he said worriedly. Rex looked at him.

* * *

Somewhere in the stadium, a bruised and battered Shira was taped to the floor, wearing only his boxer shorts as Sector Security crowded round him.

"He… just snuck up… behind me…" he groaned…

* * *

"Are you gonna accept my challenge or are you gonna back down in front of all these people?" Hunter laughed to Yusei. "So you wanna duel Hunter Pace? Trust me, you don't wanna duel Shira, and he's a real boar!"

"...Let's do this!" Yusei smiled.

"Alright!"

The MC was panicking. "Uh... I'm not sure if this is, uh…" Suddenly, Goodwin appeared on a screen beside him.

_"If you're waiting for my approval, well then..." _Rex nodded and the screen went blank.

"Director Goodwin has green-lit Hunter's challenge; we are a-go! The duel is on!"

Yusei and Hunter Pace revved their Runners as they rode around the track.

**Yusei: 4000 (0)**

**Hunter: 4000 (0)**

"First move's mine," Hunter called, "I draw! And from my hand, I summon (1) Burning Skull Head(1000/800) in ATK mode!" The monster in question couldn't have been named better, it was a skull on fire, "Then I end my turn by placing three cards face-down!" The three cards appeared.

"I'm up then," Yusei started his turn, "And I summon Speed Warrior in ATK mode!" he grey-suited warrior skated from a blue portal (ATK: 900).

MC: "Looks like Yusei's not gonna waste any time getting on the offensives; Speed Warrior's ATK points double during its battle phase!"

Speed Warrior: (ATK: 1800)

"Speed Warrior, attack him with Hyper Sonic Slash!" Speed rushed toward his target.

"Sorry, but my Zero Guard trap card's putting the brakes on your Speed Warrior!" Burning Skull Head glowed with baleful aura.

Burning Skull Head: (ATK: 0)

"See, by taking away all me Burning Skull Head's ATK points, I can make it invilnerable to attack. So you can't destroy it in battle!" Speed's roundhouse kick bounced off the skull, which ran smack into Hunter.

**Yusei: 4000 (2)**

**Hunter: 2200 (2)**

MC: "Whoa! Talk about a turn of events! He saved his monster, but Hunter got slammed with 1800 points of damage!"

* * *

Yanagi: "Why would he willingly take such a big hit?"

Dexter: "Hunter must have some sort of reason for having that skull around."

Leo: "After taking that much damage at once, his speed counter should drop, right? So how come they haven't gone down?"

* * *

"I give you the Doom Accelerator trap!" Hunter revealed the first of his reverse cards, "Thanks to this puppy, I'll be gaining 1 speed counter for every 500 points of damage I take in battle," for every counter he gained, his runner gained speed.

**Yusei: 4000 (2)**

**Hunter: 2200 (5)**

"Aw yeah! That's your first taste of a new Speed Acceleration Deck, custom made by yours truely!"

"Not a bad play, Hunter; but it'll take more than that to shake me down. For now I'll place two cards face-down and end my turn," a pair of reverse cards appeared.

"My turn then," Hunter called, "I draw! I'm cranking this duel up a notch, with the Summon Speeder spell!" Hunter played a spell card onto his console, "Since I have at least 4 speed counters, I can use Summon Speeder to bust out a new monster; so say hello to (2) Skull Vase(800/600)!" The Spell Card flashed into existence and a strange creature, a skeleton in a black and gold vase filled with water appeared (ATK: 800), "Next, by kicking Burning Skull Head and Skull Vase to the curb, I can advance-summon, (3) Skull Flame(2600/2000)!" Burning Skull Head and Skull Vase coalesced into a rainbow sphere that reformed into a towering skeleton clad in purple witch-doctor robes that bared its rib-cage and a crimson cloak, flames burning around its skull like a mane (ATK: 2600).

"Sorry, kid; I came here to duel Jack Atlas again and regain my title! And well, Yusei, you're blocking my way!" Hunter drew a card from his deck via Skull Vase's special ability, "See, you gotta fall! Skull Flame, burn up his life points!" Skull Flame formed a fireball between its hands and threw it at Speed Warrior, reducing the monster to ashes. Yusei winced as the flames seared him.

**Yusei: 2300 (1)**

**Hunter: 2200 (5)**

MC: "Yusei may have kick-started this duel with a powerful attack, but the former turbo champion had just unleashed a blistering combo, and almost evened up the score!"

"Man, Hunter's on fire!" a spectator yelled.

"...and I'm just getting warmed up. Prepare to taste the real heat as I activate the Speed Boostertrap card!" As the second trap activated, a pair of rocket launchers appeared on the back of Hunter's duel runner, go in much faster, "Welcome to the real world of Turbo Dueling, kid! If you can't keep up, then you're gonna get left behind!" Hunter laughed, "I came here to burn rubber and take names, Yusei! And no one's gonna stop me from winning the chance to reclaim my title! See, when I was the No.1 ranked turbo duelist in the world, I learned to defend my title by repeatedly deflecting attacks from all directions, just like my monster! But I also learned that to stay at the top, you gotta dish out damage hard and fast! So get ready to feel the heat!"

* * *

Yanagi: "Talks alot, doesn't he?"

Tanner: "Unfortunately, he's learned to put his money where his mouth is in this case, 'cause he earned a big advantage."

Leo: "...did Yusei just smile?"

Yanagi: "I didn't see that!-Did you see him smile?-Why would Yusei smile?"

Tanner: (smirk)

"Why are you smiling?"

* * *

"And to turn up the heat, Satellite, I initiate Speed Booster's special attack, dealing 100 points of damage due to the difference in speed counters!" multiple missiles fired from the launchers and exploded around Yusei.

**Yusei: 1900 (1)**

**Hunter: 2200 (5)**

MC: "Ladies and Gentlemen, this is a whole new Hunter Pace we're seeing! He's totally reinvented himself!"

"I'm on the fast track to glory! No one can stop me! Don't blink or you'll miss me!" Hunter set a card face-down, "I'm bringing a whole new intensity into dueling! I'm gonna leave the entire world in my dust! I'm gonna-HUH?"

"You're gonna what?" Yusei started his turn right beside Hunter.

"How are you keeping up with me?" Hunter looked in the screen of his console, and there he saw... "Slip stream? Aw man, you gotta be kidding me!"

* * *

Yanagi: "Is that why he's smiling?"

Tanner: "Sure is. And with that card in play, Yusei might be smiling all the way to the finish line. You see, Yanagi, since Hunter played a speed-spell last round, and Yusei had fewer speed counters than him, Yusei's speed-counters catch up to where Hunters are."

Leo: "Yusei rules!"

Dexter: "Let's just hope he can make use of that position.

* * *

"You think you're slicker that slick, don't ya? So I heard say you were good, Yusei. But I'm afraid you're just not good enough to keep up with me. I activate the trap, Acceleration Zone!" as soon as the trap activated, a sparkling, silvery road made way around Hunter's path, instantly boosting his speed, "YYEEEEAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

**Yusei: 1900 (6)**

**Hunter: 2200 (12)**

MC: "Incredible! Hunter Pace's speed counters have rocketed all the way to twelve! He doesn't get any faster that twelve speed counters!"

"You may think you outsmarted me by slipping in your Slip Stream last round, but my deck is so fast that no matter what card you make or move you make, you'll always be a step behind! And that's something you Satellites have to come to expect, isn't it?"

"Well, I wonder if you expected me to play this: the Summon Speeder spell!"

MC: "Whoa, Yusei met Hunter Pace's challenge with a direct counter!"

"Now with the power of Summon Speeder, I summon Quilbolt Hedgehog in DEF mode, and Junk Synchron in ATK mode!" both Quilbolt (DEF: 800) and Junk Synchron appeared (ATK: 1300), "And thanks to Junk Synchron's special ability, I can summon another monster from my graveyard. So I'm bringing back Speed Warrior!" Speed returned from the grave (DEF: 400), "And now, I tune my Junk Synchron with my Quilbolt Hedgehog to synchro-summon Junk Warrior!" Junk Synchron descended as three glowing rings that encircled Quilbolt, reducing it to two glowing stars. The stars aligned within the rings and connected as dark purple aura that filled the Synchro Summon…

"Clustering stars will call upon a new force. Become the path its light shines upon. Synchro Summon! Show yourself, Junk Warrior!"

Junk Warrior burst from the Synchro Summon with a battle-cry (ATK: 2300).

* * *

Leo: "Alright!"

Yanagi: "I guess you can say he's keeping pace with Hunter."

* * *

"But before I attack, since Speed Warrior is a level-2, Junk Warrior can absorb his ATK points. Go, Power of Fellows!" Junk Warrior glowed with energy as Speed Warrior hi-fived him (ATK: 3200), "It's go time!" Junk Warrior flew at Skull Flame, but a pulsing barrier of energy expanded from Hunter's runner and blocked the attack.

"Heh, forget about my Speed Booster already?" Hunter laughed. Junk Warrior's attack was deflected by a barrier.

* * *

Yanagi: "Oh dear."

Tanner: "Remember, with that Speed Booster trap card, Hunter can block one attack per round as long as he has the lead in speed counters."

* * *

"I gotta find a way to push through this," Yusei ended his turn with a reverse card.

"Yeah, that's what I thought. I draw!" Hunter started his turn, "See, after Jack took my title and I failed to snatch it back, I went into hiding to under-go some serious re-training. And I realized that if I was gonna again rule the turbo duels, I have to put speed first. You're as goon as done in a turbo duel if you can't fearlessly harness the power of true speed. It's not what you do, it's how fast you do it, which I will now demonstrate by activating the Acceleration Draw speed-spell! This lets me draw 2 cards from my deck," Hunter draw twice and was driven at what he got, "Aw yeah! It's in my hand: the End of Storm spell card!"

* * *

Jack: "What?"

* * *

"He has the spell card End of Storm?" Yusei exclaimed.

"You should've stayed indoors today, Yusei! The local forecast calls for some hardcore schooling, and a whole lotta let-down! With a slight chance of annihilation! But it's too late for ya' now! I activate End of Storm!" A raging tempest erupted as soon as Hunter played the spell, "From what I understand, you and Jack had some history, so I'm sure you know what this means: the storm destroys every monster on the field and then we take 300 points of damage for every monster we had!" every monster on the field shattered into pixels. Yusei and Hunter cried out as they were slammed with the damage.

**Yusei: 1300 (7)**

**Hunter: 1900 (12)**

MC: "Now Hunter Pace has managed to nail Yusei for 600 points of damage! But in doing so, he had to obliterate his own monster! He can't attack now! What's he gonna do?"

"Ha! Now that the storm's blown over, I get to remove one Skull Flame in my graveyard from play. By doing so, I can summon the incredible (4) Supersonic Skull Flame(2600/2000) to the field in ATK mode!" energy exploded into flames beside him, forming into a new monster, a skeletal centaur with the upper body of Skull Flames minus its robes, with a longer and more regal cloak, and a greater plume of fire. Its lower body was that of a skeletal horse, clad in black and gold armor with a plume of fire for a tail.

MC: "Not only did Hunter destroyed every monster on the field and deal damage to Yusei, but he's managed to summon an incredibly powerful new monster! What a stupendous string of moves! This could be the end of the duel right here! Hunter may be moving on to the tournament! And Jack Atlas may be getting a little scared right about now!"

"This duel is over, Yusei, 'cause my Supersonic Skull Flame's gonna attack you directly!" Well, my Scrapiron Scarecrow should extinguish his attack!" Yusei's trap activated and the scarecrow protected him with a barrier. It flipped back face-down afterward.

MC: "Yusei has shielded himself from Hunter's Skull Flame!"

"Let's see what you do when I activate Speed Booster!" Hunter's booster fired another round of missiles at Yusei.

**Yusei: 800 (7)**

**Hunter: 1900 (12)**

"And now I activate Supersonic's special ability. So for every Burning Skull Head in my graveyard, you take 400 points of damage!" Supersonic Skull Flame roared and illusory images of a burning skull appeared beside it, shooting forwards and exploding into infernos that engulfed Yusei.

**Yusei: 400 (7)**

**Hunter: 1900 (12)**

MC: "Yusei is barely holding on with a measly 400 life points! Can he survive?"

* * *

Goodwin: 'C'mon, Yusei; show me that Mark of the Dragon..."

Lazar: "If we confirm that Yusei is a Signer, shall I have him brought to you, Director?"

Jack glared at Goodwin and Lazar with a presuming look on his face.

* * *

"It's my turn," Yusei drew, "And first I'm gonna slow this duel down a little bit, with Shift Down!" he slapped a spell card onto his console.

MC: "Yusei has intentionally decreased his speed counters! What could he be thinking?"

* * *

Yanagi: "Maybe he isn't thinking!"

Tanner: "He must be begging on his deck right now."

Dexter: "Begging on his deck?"

Tanner: "That's right; see, Shift Down may forcibly lower your speed counters by 6, but the upside is that it lets you draw 2 card from the top of your deck."

Leo: "I get it! He's hoping to bust out a game-changer."

Tanner: "Exactly; our friend Yusei never stops believing in his cards."

* * *

**Yusei: 400 (2)**

**Hunter: 1900 (12)**

"Now that my speed is decreased, I get to draw 2 more cards," Yusei drew twice, "And next I summon Nitro Synchron!" Yusei's gas-tank tuner appeared (ATK: 300), "Now that I got a tuner monster on my field, I can bring back Quilbolt Hedgehog back from my graveyard!" the prickly hedgehog returned (DEF: 800), "With that done, I'm activating the Give and Take trap card!" Yusei revealed his reverse card, "So now I'm gonna give your defense a little boost, and take advantage of the power that beast possesses."

"You're doing what?" Junk Warrior appeared from the graveyard next to Hunter (DEF: 500)

"Now Quilbolt's level increases for each level junk Synchron has!"

Quilbolt Hedgehog: (Lvl-5)

"You may have been at the top of the rank back in the day, Hunter, but that's only bacause you've never faced beasts with abilities like these."

* * *

Dexter: "So with Quilbolt Hedgehog bumped up to to level-5, and Nitro Synchron already at level-5, then he-"

Leo: "Can synchro-summon a level-7 monster!"

* * *

"Now I tune my Nitro Synchron with my Quilbolt Hedgehog to synchro-summon Nitro Warrior!" the synchro process began as Yusei chanted:

"Clustering minds will now become a new force! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Blaze on, Nitro Warrior!"

Yusei's muscle-bound rocket warrior appeared (ATK: 2800).

Pretty cool monster," Hunter goaded, "But I can deflect you attack with Speed Booster; so there's no point in summoning that thing!"

* * *

Tanner: "I wonder if Hunter know synchro-summoning with Nitro Synchron has enabled Yusei to draw another card from the top of his deck?"

Yanagi: "Is that why Yusei summoned it?"

"You got it. He's trying to get to a certain card."

* * *

Hunter's speed has greatly surpassed Yusei's by difference in speed counters, "Check it out, Yusei! I'm so much faster, I'm about to out-lap you!"

Yusei ignored Hunter's taunt, and focused on his cards. He closed his eyes, and focused all his energies into drawing his last card. And the card in question is... "Just what I needed! I activate the speed-spell Gap Storm!" a strong hurricane erupted on the track.

"What is this?"

"I can only activate Gap Storm when the difference in our speed counters is 10 or more," Yusei explained, "That's why I slowed down. Now I can destroy every trap and spell card on the field."

"Oh, no! Then that means-"

"Say goodbye to your Speed Booster!" one by one, every spell and trap cards shattered into pixels.

* * *

Leo: "Now, talk about a big-time work actually paying off!"

Dexter: "How ironic: he can actually win a game of speed by slowing down!"

* * *

"This ain't over!"

"It will be once Nitro's special ability kicks in. And because I activated a spell card on my own turn, my Nitro Warrior gets hooked up with 1000 ATK points!" Nitro was charged up with a torrent of lightning as he powered up.

Nitro Warrior: (ATK: 3800)

"Nitro, attack with Dynamite Crunch!" Nitro flew over after Skull Flame and rocketed at him with a pair of giant chakra-fists. The Skull Flame spewed a blast of fire, in attempts to out-power him, but to no avail. Supersonic Skull Flame was instantly pummeled.

**Yusei: 400 (2)**

**Hunter: 700 (11)**

"I'm still ahead," Hunter cried.

"Not for long. You see, Hunter, even though you had the lead for most of the duel, your life points are about to run out of gas. And it's all because of my Nitro Warrior's special ability."

"Wait! Now Junk Synchron gets switched to ATK mode? But that means it can't protect me!" Junk switched its battle position (ATK: 1300).

"Nitro, attack!" Nitro channeled his energies for one final strike.

MC: "Yusei's about to pull off a come-from-behind victory!"

"Can't we just be friends?" but despite all of Hunter's pleading, it didn't prevent taking out Junk Synchron, as well as the rest of Hunter's life points. The former champion cried out in as the blow struck and steam exploded from his runner…

**Yusei: 400 (2)**

**Hunter: 0 (10)**

MC: "It's over! There's just no luck for the one-time champion these days! His dreams go up in smoke again!"

* * *

Leo: "Yusei did it! I just know he could do it!"

Yanagi: "That was incredible!"

* * *

Hunter's runner skidded to a stop as he was tossed from it. Yusei brought his own duel runner to a halt. The Satellite turbo duelists dismounted and pulled his helmet.

Hunter laughed. "Oh, yeah!"

"That was a really great duel, Hunter," Yusei said.

"Don't think i'll take this loss sitting down, Yusei!" Hunter rubbed his head sheepishly, "I, uh, probably should've stood up before I said that. Haha! Man, I thought I had ya!"

Yusei smiled as Hunter kept on laughing.

* * *

From the tower, Goodwin was disappointed at how things turned out, "Hunter was too weak to bring out Yusei's sign."

"His next opponent should try breaking him instead of bending him!" Lazar ominously cackled.

Jack suddenly shot up from his seat, "This isn't just about winning the chance to duel me, is is?" he demanded, "What's really going on here? What do you need Yusei to help you do, anyway?"

"...All in due time, Jack," Goodwin said simply, "All in due time."

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Burning Skull Head**

**FIRE/ Zombie/Effect /Level 3/ATK: 1000/DEF: 800**

**When this card is Special Summoned from your hand, inflict 1000 damage to your opponent. You can remove from play this face-up card you control to return 1 removed from play "Skull Flame" to its owner's Graveyard.**

**(2) Skull Vase**

**WATER/ Zombie/Effect /Level 3/ATK: 800/DEF: 600**

**When this card is Tributed for a Tribute Summon, draw 1 card.**

**(3) Skull Flame**

**FIRE/ Zombie/Effect /Level 8/ATK: 2600/DEF: 2000**

**Once per turn, you can Special Summon 1 "Burning Skull Head" from your hand. You cannot conduct your Battle Phase the turn you activate this effect. You can add 1 "Burning Skull Head" from your Graveyard to your hand instead of conducting your normal draw during your Draw Phase.**

**(4) Supersonic Skull Flame**

**WIND/ Zombie/Effect /Level 10/ATK: 2600/DEF: 2000**

**This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card can only be Special Summoned by removing 1 "Skull Flame" in your Graveyard from play. Once per turn, you can inflict 400 damage to your opponent for each "Burning Skull Head" in your Graveyard. When this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard, you can Special Summon 1 "Skull Flame" from the Graveyard.

* * *

**

**Ken: Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: Aw, yeah! Now's my turn to shine! My Horus Deck is ready for anything! Even that Carted guy's Magician Deck! ...Wait, am I? Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator!**

**Please Review.**


	28. Magician's Force

**Same disclaimer applied.**

"Talking"

'Thinking'

_Flashback_

_Distant Communication_

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."

The story begins as we last left it: with Yusei running a victory lap after his victory against Hunter Pace. The whole crowd was flabbergast at what happened; except for Yanagi, Tanner, Dexter, Leo and Luna.

"Yusei beat Hunter!"

"Yeah, looks like he's moving on to the A-Block semi-finals!"

"He's the best, but Yusei learned all his best moves from yours truly," Leo crowed.

"Oh? And where were those moves when you lost in first round?" Luna teased.

"Uh... Wait, I was playing as you, which means that you lost; as for all the millions of people are watching, I didn't lose a thing!"

Hearing that, Luna got angry and started beating on her twin brother, "That's the last time you duel as me!"

* * *

Later after Yusei's match, he was looking over his deck when he felt someone tug on his jacket...

"Hey Yusei, do you know where Jason is?" Katherine asked.

"Oh, he's right over there," Yusei pointed to the same spot where Jason was then and now sleeping. That gave Kat an idea…

Just like last time, she nuzzled his nose with her own. And she kept doing so until Jason woke up. Then the whole thing start over again.

"Waaah!" Jason practically jumped off his chair as he fell to the floor on his back.

"Wakey-wakey, Jason! Ken's next match is about to start!"

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 25: Magician's Force**

**

* * *

**

"Alright, time for the third round of the Fortune Cup Wild Card!" the MC announced, "Our first competitor, first-timer in the Regional, Kenichi Matsuda!" the crowds cheered as Ken shot out to the track with his runner.

"Challenging him is his opponent, the Master of Magicians, the Wizard of Wonder, the would be Houdini himself, David Carten!" another runner shot out, a violet cycle with golden lining all around it, it reminds people of a certain magician. The rider wears a suit of the same color, as well as his helmet, which has gold linings as well.

"Duelists, bring in Speed World!" the MC announced. Both Ken and David pressed buttons on their runners and the field spell appeared on their screens, the purple aura exploding out to engulf the arena.

_"Duel Mode engaged, Autopilot standing by, Speed World activated."_

The runner screens changed to display the duel field.

_"Ready... Set... Begin Turbo Duel!"_

Ken and David's runners shot forwards with howling engines!

**Ken: 4000 (0)**

**David: 4000 (0)**

"I'll make the first move!" Ken started the duel, "And I start off by playing (1) UFO Turtle(1400/1200) in DEF mode!" a blue portal released a green turtle, tucked within a metallic shell of a spacecraft, "Then I place 3 cards face-down and end my turn!" three reverse cards appeared around Ken.

"Then I guess it's my move," David started his turn, "And the monster I summon is a spellcaster known as the (4) Rapid-Fire Magician(1600/1200)," A male magician in purple suit, hat and cape appeared, carrying two silver scepters with white orbs in them, "Next, by removing 2 speed counters, I activate the speed spell, Tribute to the Doomed," as soon as David discarded a card from his hand after he activated the speed spell, a portal appeared behind UFO Turtle, wrapping it around in bandages and allowing a decayed claw drag it in, "Now Rapid-Fire Magician's effect activates: every time I play a normal-spell card, you get hit with 400 points of damage," the magician smirked as he the orbs on the scepter grew red. He launched them at David's opponent, who yelped in pain.

**Ken: 3600 (2)**

**David: 4000 (0)**

"And since you have no monsters to protect you, he's free to attack you directly," David's monster fired another round...

"I activate the Shrink speed-spell!" Ken quickly activated one of his reverse cards, "And like you, I'm gonna remove 2 speed counters to cut your magician's ATK power in half!" a large magnifying glass appeared between him and the Magician's attack, but it only stopped half of the magic from going through.

**Ken: 2800 (0)**

**David: 4000 (0)**

"With that done, I'll also throw down three face-downs and end my turn," another trio of reverse cards appeared.

"My move, then," Ken drew, "I'll play another UFO Turtle in DEF mode," another turtle appeared, "That'll do for me."

"It's my turn," David drew, "I summon the (5) Shadowpriestess of Ohm(1700/1600)," a woman appeared wearing black cloaks from head to toe and a black head dress, "Now, Rapid-Fire, attack!" as soon as the magician fired another round from his twin scepters, a reverse card flipped up, "And before I forget, I'll also play the Magician's Circle trap card. With this in play, each player summons a spellcaster with 2000 or less ATK from their deck. So the monster I'm summoning will be the Dark Magician Girl!" as soon as the trap activated, a multi-dimensional pentagram appeared out of the card, and from that portal appeared a female monster, very good-looking with long blond hair and blue eyes, a slight blush on her cheeks. She was dressed in light blue robes with a star-shape broach in her center. Her headdress was similar to the Dark Magician's but her staff was shorter (ATK: 2000).

MC: "I don't believe whom I'm looking at! David just summon one of the most powerful, the most peerless, and, dare I say it, the most pretty-looking spellcasters in the history of the world of Duel Monsters: the Dark Magician Girl!"

"Dark Magician Girl?" Ken exclaimed, 'He actually have a Dark Magician Girl? How could anyone have such a rare card? Only the King of Games himself ever used it!'

"I'm still waiting for you to make a move," David said annoyed, "Magician's Circle lets you summon a monster as well."

"Huh? Oh yeah, right; I play Hand of Nephthys!" the Phoenix Priestess appeared, ready to battle (ATK: 600).

"Well it's too bad you weren't expecting to face someone who favors spellcasters. And neither could you be for this," Rapid-Fire continued his assault.

"Not so fast! I activate the (5Ds)Burst of the Phoenix trap!" Ken activated another of his reverse cards; it shows a fiery phoenix rising from the crusty ground, "When you attacked, this trap allows me to release two of my monsters to call out a special one from my hand or in my graveyard! So by releasing my UFO Turtle and my Hand of Nephthys, I can call out one of my most powerful monsters,so say hi to my Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys!" both monsters disappeared into a portal, and in its place was a giant female golden phoenix(ATK: 2400), "And that's not all; after phoenix is summoned, this trap also destroy one spell/trap on your field!" the phoenix unleashed a stream of fire and scorched one of David's two remaining face-downs. From the remains came a yellow worm-like creature. It was a Vicious Monster Token(1000/1000) from the destroyed trap, Statue of the Wicked (ATK: 1000).

"Too bad that phoenix can't stick around!" David said as his face-down card was raised to reveal a card with a coffin on it, "I activate the trap, Dark Renewal! Thanks to this, I'm allowed to release a monster on either side of the field to summon yet another spellcaster, one that is in my graveyard."

"What? But you don't have any spellcasters there!"

"I guess you weren't paying attention when I played my speed-spell last round; remember, I discarded a card to get rid of that UFO Turtle of yours."

"But if you're playing Dark Renewal..." Ken gasped, "Then there's only one monster that fits the bill!"

"That's right; by releasing my Vicious Token and your Sacred Pheonix, I activate Dark Renewal to special-summon the ever-famous Dark Magician!" The coffin opened up and the legendary Spellcaster from the King of Games rose from it, staff twirling, but his robes were entirely different from the audience was expecting: instead of the famous purple robes, his was entirely black, as well as a head of white hair (ATK: 2500).

MC: "Unbelievable! The Dark Magician and his apprentice have been reunited for this soon-to-be-unforgettable duel! Let's see what else Mr. Carten's got under his hat!"

"You can't fool me, magic-man," Ken taunted, "cause the real Dark Magician always wore purple garments, not black!"

"Oh, but it's very real, as you're about to find out soon enough," David countered, "Next I activate Ohm's special ability: by releasing a Dark-Attribute monster on my field, 800 points is dealt to you as damage. So Ohm, why don't you show him a little of your black magic!" Ohm nodded and focused her power into a large orb of dark magic, which instantly exploded when collided with Ken's runner.

**Ken: 2000 (2)**

**David: 4000 (2)**

"That'll do for now," he concluded.

MC: "In just two rounds David managed to reduce Kenichi's life point by half! Is the duel over for Ken before it's even started?"

'It might as well be if he keeps hammering me with abilities like those,' Ken thought, 'But why didn't he attack me with his monsters? Did he suspect my Gravity Bind trap I set on my first turn?' he looked at his only face-down on his console; it was indeed Gravity Bind, 'Well, in that case, I'm just gonna have to fight fire with fire!'

"It's my move!" Ken started his turn, 'Perfect! Just the card I'm looking for!'"I activate the speed-spell Double Summon!" he slapped the spell card onto his duel runner console, "And with this, I can play two monsters this turn! So I'm bringing out Horus the Black Flame Dragon Lv4, and (2) Rose, Warrior of Revenge(1600/600)!" two portals materialized, and from one came a chrome-metal falcon (ATK: 1600), and another is a red-headed woman in a black armored leather jumpsuit, with a white scarf around her neck, and wielded a sword in her right hand(ATK: 1600).

* * *

Katherine: "Why did he play them in ATK mode? Their ATK points are much lower than David's monsters! So why summon them?"

Yusei: "Because Rose is a tuner-monster. He's going to synchro-summon this turn. That's why he risked both monsters in ATK position,"

Jason: "So since both monsters are level-4..."

Katherine: "That means he can synchro-summon a level-8 monster!"

* * *

"Alright, Rose! Let's give 'ol Horus a well-deserved tune-up!" Rose separated into four synchro-gates and encircled Horus, which disappeared into four stars as Ken chanted:

"Tuning! From the ashes a new flame ignites, behold the power that burns hotter than the sun! Synchro-  
Summon! Burn, (3) Wildfire Dragon(2900/2400)!"

When the light faded, a whole new monster took place: a red armored dragon with crimson-red scales from head to toe. His golden underbelly reflected from the lights of the arena. His tail had a three-pronged golden trident at the tip. His star-shaped crest on his head has a blue sapphire on the center. It debuted with a mighty roar(ATK: 2900), "And with the power of my beast, your Rapid-Fire Magician is about to get char-broiled! Go, Nova Blast Stream!" Wildfire unleashed a searing cannon of super-heated fire, which wiped out the magician into ashes.

**Ken: 2000 (3)**

**David: 2600 (2)**

"And that's it for my turn!"

"Alright, my turn!" David drew.

**Ken: 2000 (4)**

**David: 2600 (3)**

"I activate the Riryoku speed-spell!" David played them spell card, "By removing 2 speed counters I can reduce the ATK of one monster on your field; and then half of that power gets transferred to a monster on my field," Ken's Wildfire was drained of energy and then was transferred to David's Dark Magician.

Wildfire Dragon: (ATK: 1450)

Dark Magician: (ATK: 3950)

"Whadaya say, Dark Magician? Let's give those two a taste of your new firepower!" the famous magician nodded as he twirled his staff and unleashed a fire attack at the dragon. But it was soon restricted by a barrier of cris-crossing green energy around his target and its master.

"Sorry, Carten, but my Gravity Bind prevents all monsters level-4 or higher from attacking!" Ken's reverse card was flipped open, "You're gonna have to try harder than that to take me down!"

"The I guess I have no other choice but to end my turn."

"And starts mine," Ken started his turn.

**Ken: 2000 (5)**

**David: 2600 (2)**

"Now I'm gonna activate Wildfire Dragon's special ability! See, once per turn I can remove either one or two fire-Attribute monsters in my graveyard from play, and then you take damage according to its requirement!" two card popped out of Ken's console and he pocketed them, "And since I discarded two of them, you take 1500 points of damage! Go, reign of terror!" Wildfire's wings ignited, and flapped its flames through the barrier, and onto the Magician duelist.

**Ken: 2000 (5)**

**David: 1100 (1)**

"And with that, I end my turn!"

MC: "Things are really heating up now! At this rate Ken's Wildfire Dragon will finish this in just one more round if David doesn't do something on his next turn!"

"Alright, it's my turn," David drew, "...I place one card face-down," a reverse card appeared beside David's runner, "...and end my turn."

"Then I guess it's my turn then," Ken drew, "and now I activate Wildfire's special ability one more time!" Ken pocketed two more monsters from his grave and allowed his dragon to deal the final blow. Wildfire Dragon's flames exploded around David as it connected, "I guess i'll be going on to the finals then..."

But when the smoke cleared, he was astonished that the attack didn't phase Carten at all. His life points remained untouched.

**Ken: 2000 (7)**

**David: 1100 (3)**

"What just happened? My dragon shouldn't scorched his life points!" a confused Ken got his answer when he spotted a trap card that just flipped over: it depicts a picture of Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl crossing their staffs together, charging up for an attack, with shadows of countless other spellcasters below then "What kind of trap is that?"

"This is my (5Ds)Magician's Force trap card, and also my ticket to the semi-finals," David explained, "See, I can only play this card if I have at least two monsters on the fields, and one of them is a Magician monster," both magicians crossed their scepters together just like on the card, and their energies gathered at the center, "For each level of combined monsters on my field, you take 100 points of damage. And I with both my magicians out that gives me a total level of 14."

"But that only leaves me with 600 life points! Wildfire's effect can nail you with 1500, so what's the point in that!"

"That's what I was waiting for. Because whenever Magician's Force is used to counter a monster's effect that deals damage to an opponent, you get his again with the same amount of damage!"

"Oh man! The that's means..."

"It's game over! Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl, end this with Magician's Force!" the magical duo unleashed the combined pink-and-blue energies and fired the sphere directly at Ken. The attack concluded in a giant explosion before Ken's runner blew steam and shut down.

**Ken: 0 (5)**

**David: 1100 (3)**

MC: "Talk about pulling one out of his hat! David Carten managed to extinguish the flames of Wildfire's Reign of Terror with the combine efforts of our two favorite magicians! Let's give a big applaud for the Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl!"

The entire stadium went wild as they cheered in merriment for the spellcaster and his apprentice, whom bowed simultaneously.

Both Kenichi and David dismounted their runners and met each other face-to-face. They shook hands in honor of a great duel.

"Man, I thought I had you!" Ken exclaimed.

"Yeah, whatever," David said bluntly, "I thought I wouldn't be able to beat you either."

Ken laughed, "You had a lot of tricks up your sleeves, too, didn't ya? Which reminds me, how did you get those magicians in your deck?"

"Well... let's say a true magician never reveals his secrets."

* * *

Katherine: "Mrrooww, I thought Kenny's gonna win for sure..."

Jason: "Me too. I guess this guy's full of surprises. Looks like you're the last to duel in the wild card, Kat. You ready for it?"

"N-E-K-O! That spells ready!"

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) UFO Turtle**

**FIRE/ Machine/Effect /Level 4/ATK: 1400/DEF: 1200**

**When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard, you can Special Summon 1 FIRE monster with 1500 or less ATK from your Deck in face-up Attack Position.**

**(2) Rose, Warrior of Revenge**

**FIRE/ Warrior/Effect /Level 4/ATK: 1600/DEF: 600**

**When this card inflicts Battle Damage to your opponent, inflict 300 damage to your opponent.**

**(3) Wildfire Dragon**

**FIRE/ Dragon/Synchro/Effect /Level 8/ATK: 2900/DEF: 2400**

**Synchro Requirements: one tuner + one or more non-tuner monsters**

**This card is not effected by spell cards. Once per turn, during your main phase you can remove one fire type monster in your graveyard from play to deal 1000 points of damage or remove 2 fire monsters to deal 1500 points of damage. If you do this, this monster cannot attack this turn.**

**(This card is created by 5-Digit. All rights go to its creator.)**

**(4) Rapid-Fire Magician**

**DARK/ Spellcaster/Effect /Level 4/ATK: 1600/DEF: 1200**

**TInflict 400 damage to your opponent each time you activate a Normal Spell Card.**

**(5) Shadowpriestess of Ohm**

**DARK/ Spellcaster/Effect /Level 4/ATK: 1700/DEF: 1600**

**You can Tribute 1 face-up DARK monster you control to inflict 800 damage to your opponent.**

**

* * *

**

**Katherine: Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: It's finnaly my turn! My Nekos are ready for anything! I'll meet Jason in the finals for sure! Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator!**

**(A/N: In the next chapter, I decided not to feature the duel of Frank against Koda. Let's keep assuming Koda won and leave it at that, okay?")**

**Please Review.**


	29. PsychoKiller: Part 1

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."

We now meet our heroes in the competitors' lounge, getting ready for the final round of the Frotune Cup prelimenaries. Katherine Cheshire has got everything ready: deck, disk, and even her favorite neko-sailor costume.

"So, do I look cute or what?"

"Kat, you're just as cute as cute can be!" Ken stated, "You're gonna woo the audience for sure!"

"Meow-wow!" she hopped.

Gabriella came and brought Katherine in for a hug, "Just make sure you play nice, Kat, okay?"

"Okay," she said meekly, "Wait, where's Jason?" everyone ponted to the same spot, with Jason himself fast asleep, _again._ That's when history once again repeated himself. One little nuzzle and Jason was once again flat on his back.

The scene changes to a dark, dim-litted area. There we saw an unknown figure sat on a small desk, mixing and matching a group of cards, until...

_"Divine, you match is about to begin,"_ the foreign voice came from an intercom above.

"Well it's about time," the figure gathered his cards and went on his way, "Finnaly it's my turn to shine."

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 26: Psycho-Killer**

**Part 1: Shock Absorber

* * *

**

"Ladies and gentlemen, it's time for the final match of the Fortune Cup prelimenaries!" the MC announced, "We've witnessed many amazing duelists, we've observed many mystifying monsters, and beholded many electrifying combos! Now it's time for the final two! Let's begin the forth and final prelimenaries of the Fortune Cup Wild Card!" the crowds went wild.

"Introducing our first opponent, she's cute, she's cuddly, and she's as heavenly as a little 10-year-old cosplayer can be! Duelists of all ages, I present to you: Miss Katherine Cheshire!" soon enough, Katherine ascended from a hydraulic platfrom. Sure enough, no one could stop commenting on how cute she was with her cat-ears on her head.

"And now, for her opponent, he's the... well, we don't exactly know who he is, but let's give a big welcome to Divine!" from another platform, another duelist confronted Katherine: his lime-green hair had a bang that covered most of his right eye, and he wears a white stuff-collared suit. When Katherine took a first glance at her, she knew she wouldn't like him one bit.

"Hey, I know you!" she puffed, "You're the meaney who made fun of Jason!"

"And you're a naive little girl who's in my way," Divine said annoyed, "C'mon, let's duel and get this over with," both duelists activated their disked, inserted their decks and made five opening draws.

"Let's duel!"

**Kat: 4000**

**Divine: 4000

* * *

**

Upon the crowds in the stands, Nathan and Rico met up with Gabrella, along with Ken Matsuda.

Gabriella: "I can't believe I'm going to see my sister duel today!"

Ken: "I'm sure she's just as pumped us as I was!"

Rico: "Go, get 'im, Kat!"

And as by surprised, Jason wedged between Ken and Gabe from one of the seats behind them, "Hi!"

Gabriella, "Jason?"

Ken: "Hey, man! Whacha' doing here? I thought you would still be snoozing in the lounge, with the other semi-finalists."

Jason: "I just thought I'd get a bird's-eye view of the final prelimenaries." "Go, Neko! Show him what you're made of!"

* * *

"Age before beauty, little girl; so I'll go first," drew his sixth card, "I activate the Psi-Station spell card," whe Divine activated that card, four transformers appeared, each one marked in one corner of his spell/trap card zone; they charged up and created a barrier around the five card zones, "Next I summon the monster know as (1) Krebons(1200/400)," the monster he summoned appeared as some sort of cybernetic jester; its robes were violet with golden curcuit linings, its limbs were barely attached to its torso, and its visor prsented characters to make a sinister glare, "Whenever a Psychic-Type monster is summoned by normal means, the effect of Psy-Station activate," the four transformers charged up and electricuted the monster, but Krebons din't flinch.

"What's happening to your monster?" Kat asked worriedly.

"By paying 500 of my life points, a Pychic's ATK power in increased by 300, and its level by 1," a red aura appeared around Divine. When Krebons was freed from the electric shock, it still produced an electric surge, indicating how stronger it got.

**Kat: 4000**

**Divine: 3500**

Krebons: (Lv: 3/ATK: 1500)

"And to end my turn, I'm placing these two cards face-down," three reverse cards appeared.

"Okey-doke, then I guess it's my turn! Nya!" Katherine drew her sixth card, "First i'll activate Dian Keto The Cure Master, increasing my life points by 1000!" when Kat slapped the spell onto her disk, a white aura surrounded her and boosted her life points.

**Kat: 5000**

**Divine: 3500**

"Next I'll play (6) Neko Warrior(1400/800) in ATK mode!" a silver-haired neko appeared; it wore a blue-and-white shinobi outfit, wielding a pair of long slender blades, one red and the other blue, "When Neko Warrior is summoned to the field, I can remove up to three spell or trap cards from my deck and send them to my graveyard! Then, when she attacks, she gets 100 ATK during the battle phase for every card removed by her effect!" Kat searched her deck and removed three cards to her graveyard slot, "Now, Neko Warrior, show then what you can do! Attack Krebons with Neko Ninja Strike!" the warrior twurled her blades and made a dash towards the harlequin.

Neko Warrior: (ATK: 1700)

"By attacking Krebons with a simple attack you activated his special ability," as if by command, several transpatent lime-green cubes appeared around Krebons. The cubes formed together to create a barrier surounding the monster, which perfectly fortified it against Neko Warrior's twin-sword attack, "For a small price of 800 life points, Krebons can conjure up an aura of cybernetic data to defend itself from any attack."

**Kat: 5000 (31)**

**Divine: 2700**

_"Amazing abilities! That means Divine's Krebon can shelter itself from any attack that comes at him, all at the cost of 800 life points!"_

"I guess i'll place a face-down! N-E-K-O, I end my turn!" a single face-down appeared in front of Katherine.

"It's my turn again," Divine drew, "From my hand I summon (2) Mind Protector(0/2200)," beside Krebons came a cyborg with golden armor; a violet jewel was on each of its palms and a brain was encased in purple glass on its head. After it was summoned, the Psi-Station charged it with power, "And with Psi-Station's effect, he gains another 300 ATK points and an extra level.

**Kat: 5000 (31)**

**Divine: 2200**

Mind Protector: (ATK: 300/ Lv: 4)

"And then i'll activate my face-down card, the Emergency Teleport spell card!" one of Divine's reverse cards flipped, "This card paves way to a level-3 or lower Pychic monster from my deck and straight to the field. So now i'll use its power to call upon (3) Psychic Jumper(100/1500)!" an electrically surged portal appeared and out came yet another psychic: its open brown overcoat and black leather pants barely protected his scawny, pale skin clinging to its bones. The black sunglasses also covered its beady, bugging eyes (ATK: 100), "Next I play my second face-down, the trap known as Psychic Rejuvenation! This gives me 1000 life points for every psychic monster I have on the field," the three psychic released a fog of golden stardust, which rained upon Divine.

**Kat: 5000 (31)**

**Divine: 5200**

"And now I tune my Krebons with my Mind Protector in order to synchro-summon (4) Psychic Lifetrancer(2400/2000)!" the harlequin separated into three synchro-gates to suround the golden robot, which transformed into four stars. Out of a flash of light, a beautiful teenage girl appeared. Her long raven hair reached below her thighs, her blue bodysuit clung tightly on her curves like a second skin, and on her left hand, was a metallic robot arm, "Now I activate Lifetrancer's special ability: once every turn, I can remove a psychic in my graveyard from play to gain 1200 more life points; a little effect I would like to call, Telekinetic Solar," after removing Mind Protector from his duel disk and pocketing it, Lifetrancer created an orb of bright solar energy. She used her telekinetic powers to lift the orb over divine, and release even more sparkling stardust.

**Kat: 5000 (31)**

**Divine: 6400**

"Wth that done, its time to score on some even more life points! Psychic Lifetrancer, attack Neko Warrior with Telekinetic Lunar!" the young psychic conjured up another orb, except this one was created of dark lunar energy. She hurled the orb at the feline shinobi until...

"I play my face-down spell card, Half-Shut! By cutting my neko's ATK points in half, she can be indestructible in battle!" when the quick-play spell flipped open, Neko Warrior's strength was sapped by an ominous aura (ATK: 700), and then that strengh was materialized into a barrier that surounded her. When the attack connected, it created wave of dark energy around the barrier. It protected the brave warrior from the attack, but not from the dramatic incease of gravity which suddenly and quickly forced her to her knees. As soon as the gravity went back to normal, the kitty-kunoichi was finally able to catch her breath and rise from the crater the gravitational force created.

**Kat: 3300 (31)**

**Divine: 6400**

What both surprised and frightened Kat was the surge of electricity which somehow corsed through her body during Psychic Lifetrancer's attack; and she didn't like it any better than seeing her monster being assaulted like that, "What was that shock I just felt?"

"That? Oh, that's just a little something I can do when I duel. Whenever I attack with the monster and activate a spell, the damage you take becomes real," hearing that, the whole audience mumbled in wonder. Could there be such a person who can do that?

* * *

Gabriella: "Real damage?"

Ken: "Oh, man! I can't believe what i'm hearing!"

Nathan: "Believe it, Kenichi; he's a psychic duelist."

Everyone: "A PSYCHIC?"

* * *

Back in the private box, Goodwin wasn't all too hapy about the events taking place.

"Lazar, would you mind explaining to me how someone else of his ability came to be here?" he growled.

"Heh-heh, actually I had no idea he can do that," Lazar chuckled nervously, "I checked his files but I found nothing."

"This person could endanger the audience if he were to proceed. Tell the M.C. to expunge the match. Tell him Divine is to be disqualified right this minu-"

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that," both the Director and Vice-Director quickly looked back to see the person least expected to be met: it was the same red-haired person from before, "This duel won't be canceled unless Divine has a say-so in it."

* * *

"But let's have a time-out from the duel, okay?" Divine insisted, "I've been hearing rumors about a few people harboring a couple of Satellites from Sector Security a few nights back, namely a Mister Jason Hutchins."

Somehow, Gabriella knew exactly what Divine is trying to do, 'Oh please, Katherine, don't tell him...'

"i've gathered information from, well, an anonymous source, and it looks like someone took in someone with a criminal marker into their home at the Tops for the night. Do you know who that was, Miss Cheshire?"

Gabriella's heartrate pistoned as she awaited for the answer. The tension was really irritating her while she waited. After what seemed like for an eternity, the answer came through Katherine's lips...

"Of course I do! Me and my sister found him that night!"

The entire audience gasped.

"Oh, you did, did you?" Divine smugly smiled, "Then I guess that make you both as bad as him!"

"Hey, Jason's not bad!" Katherine stamped her foot, "He was really hurt when we found him! He was real nice and he also dueled with me when he woke up-"

"Does it look like anyone cared what he did _with _you? You should've been more concerned about what he would've done _to _you if he did woke up," everyone murmured in agreement, "Look, you may think he's a nice guy, little girl, but i'm sure he's just some rough-necked punk just like all the other Satelites!"

"Yeah? And how would you know about Jason?" Katherine snapped, "You don't even know Jason! So there!" she stuck a raspberry at Divine.

"Don't know, huh?" Divine retaliated, "Listen, you don't have to know a Satellite to know the carnage and chaos they're capable of. I know for a fact that guy's no different. Just wait, soon enough that guy is gonna have with you sister, Katherine. And you won't know until it's too late."

"Well, Jason isn't like that!"

"It's just a matter of time, little girl; and it's why naive, happy-go-lucky girls like you easy target. Well, i'm here to teach you how cruel the world can be, with this card!" Divine's third reverse card flipped open, "With Urgent Tuning in play, I can perform a synchro-summon during the battle phase! So I tune my Psychic Jumper with my Psychic Lifetrancer!" Jumper levetated upward and turned into two synchro-gates. The gates surounded Lifetrancer, whom was dissolved into seven stars. The light ignited for the summoning, with Divine engulfed in the very column of energy as he chanted:

"Stars of verlism, unite as one! Unlock the gate of cyberspace to uncover the arms, and array me with the rods of destruction! Synchro-Summon!"

After the light faded away, Divine appeared a whole lot diferent than before. To everyone's surprise, he was now wearing white armor run with gold and blue circuits, "From the depths of the cyber world, enter (5) Hyper Psychic Blaster(3000/2500)!" the armored psychic's batterypack attached to his back contained long curved wings folded into it. His face was covered with a platinum-white helmet with a cybernetic blue eye in the center.

_"Wow-wee! 3000 ATK points! Only the Blue-Eyes White Dragon and Isis' Blue-Eyes Divine Dragon have that much fire power! Just what is our little Neko to do?"_

"Our little Neko is going to feel the fury of my Huper Psychic Blaster, and delete some more life points!" Divine held up a bulky black laser-blaster at Neko Warrior, "Data Blaster, fire!" his Data Blaster fired a beam of pulsing blue energy at the kunoichi. The barrier was still active due to Half-Shut, but Katherine's life points weren't safe as she trilled in pain.

**Kat: 1000 (31)**

**Divine: 6400**

"Kat's down to her last 1000 life points!" Jason stated, "She won't be standing for long if she keep on dueling!"

"...that's why she won't keep dueling," without uttering another word, Gabriella shot up from her seat and headed towards the exit...

"Hey, wait up!" with Jason following suit.

Katherine was exerting to stay conscious. She hasn't felt any more upset than she was in her entire life, "This is too scary! I wanna go home, now! I wanna quit!"

_"Um, uh sorry, I just had a word with the Director, and I'm afraid this duel must continue, meaning no one goes anywhere unless a player's life points go to zero!"_

The crowds weren't pleased to say the least.

"You must be joking!"

"You're gonna let that guy hammer a little girl like that?"

"That's not right!"

Katherine wasn't sure if sue could master over her opponent now. Not only is she way behind on life points, she's also facing a monster with 3000 ATK point. Could she have made a mistake coming here? Is she too young to handle the older duelists? Fear has clouded her judgement as she prayed for this whole nightmare to be over. She was completely scared.

...and Divine is savoring every bit of it!

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Krebons**

**Stats: [Psychic / Tuner] LV2 ATK/1200 DEF/ 400 **

**Attribute: EARTH **

**Effect: When this card is selected as an attack target, by paying 800 Life Points, negate the attack**

**(2) Mind Protector**

**Stats: [Psychic/Effect] LV3 ATK/ 0 DEF/2200 **

**Attribute: LIGHT **

**Effect: The controller of this card pays 500 Life Points during each of their End Phases. (This is not optional.) No monster with an ATK of 2000 or less can declare an attack except Psychic-Type monsters**

**(3) Psychic Jumper**

**Stats: [Psychic/Tuner] LV2 ATK/ 100 DEF/1500 **

**Attribute: EARTH**

**Effect: Once per turn, you can pay 1000 Life Points and select 1 face-up monster your opponent controls and 1 Psychic-Type monster you control, except "Psychic Jumper". Switch control of those monsters. Their battle position cannot be changed this turn, except with a card effect.**

**(4) Psychic Lifetrancer**

**Stats: [Psychic/Synchro/Effect] LV7 ATK/2400 DEF/2000 **

**Attribute: EARTH**

**Synchro-Requirements: 1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters**

**Effect: Once per turn, you can remove from play 1 Psychic-Type monsterfrom your Graveyard to gain 1200 Life Points.**

**(5) Hyper Psychic Blaster**

**Stats: [Psychic/Synchro/Effect] LV9 ATK/3000 DEF/2500 **

**Attribute: EARTH **

**Synchro-Requirements: 1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner Psychic-Type Monster **

**Effect: During battle between this attacking card and a Defense Position monster whose DEF is lower than the ATK of this card, inflict the difference as Battle Damage to your opponent. If this card attacks a Defense Position monster whose DEF is lower than the ATK of this card, gain Life Points equal to the difference at the end of the Damage Step.**

**(6) Neko Warrior**

**Stats: [Fairy/Effect] LV4 ATK/1400 DEF/800 **

**Attribute: EARTH **

**Effect: This card is also Warrior-Type. When Summoned, you can remove from play up to 3 Spell/Trap cards in your Graveyard. When this card attacks, it gains 100 ATK for each Spell/Trap card you have removed from play.**

**(This card is created by Ryo from . All rights go to him.)

* * *

**

**Gabriella: Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: My own sister is getting beaten to the floor, and Goodwin's doing nothing about it! Can Kat step up and beat that psychic jerk? Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator!**


	30. PsychoKiller: Part 2

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."

**Jason: Now let's get up to speed with YuGiOh 5D's!: In the final match of the prelimenaries, Katherine faces of against a mysterious duelist named Divine, who specializes in the new Psychic cards; and for a good reason, too: from what Nathan said, he's something called a 'psychic' duelist. The moment he synchro-summoned his Hyper Psychic Blaster and combines with it, what supposed to be an ordinary duel for once became a battle of life-and-death for Kat. With Goodwin doing nothing about it, can Katherine best this metaphysical psychopath? Let's hop on, rev it up, and find out!

* * *

**

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 27: Psycho-Killer**

**Part 2: Phoenix Force

* * *

**

"You gotta be kidding me!"

"Whad do you mean we can't get through?"

Jason and Gabriella were on their way to Goodwin's private box to try and stop the match, only to be stopped by a guard at the elevator, "I'm sorry, ma'am, but no one gets through with out a personal invitation by Director Goodwin."

"But that's my sister out there! And she's about to be seriously hurt if nothing is done to stop it!" Gabriella cried, "I just couldn't live with myself if that happens!"

"Sorry, but there's nothing I can do."

Feeling defeated, Gabriella ran off. When Jason caught up, she was spotted against the wall, silently tearing. Jason went to her side and tried to comfort her. He had never seen anyone as upset as she was. That was when he discovered an emotion he never thought he knew: sadness.

"This is all my fault, Jason," she sobbed, "I woudn't have let her go out there if I knew this would happen."

"But that's just it; you didn't know. Look, I know things look bad, but listen, all we can do now is to count on Kat. We have to trust her of fend for her own self now."

Hearing Jason inspiring words have eased Gabriella's nerves, but only for the moment. She wiped away her tears, "But are you sure she can win?"

"She _will_ beat him," the two of them held each other in a tight embrace, "But just in case..."

* * *

Back at the duel, things weren't looking good for Katherine Cheshire.

Rico: "Things aren't looking good for Kat!"

Ken: "I'll say! She's behind by over 5000 life points, and facing down a monster that's just might as well be the Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"

* * *

"Just face it, Katherine. If you want to make it out of here in one piece, then the only way out is to duel," Divine smirked under his helmet and placed his only card in his hand face-down on the field, ending his turn.

"I'm not scared of you! Nya!" Katherine started her turn, scolding and throwing aside all trace of fear, "And i'm also not scared of jerks like you who talks bad about my friends! I summon the tuner-monster, Chibi Neko-Maid!" the super-deformed neko appeared beside wher sword-wielding sibling (ATK: 400), "And now I'll tune her with Neko-Warrior to synchro-summon Neko-Polefighter!" the kunoichi dissapeared into four stars, while being surrounded by a synchro-gate. All the while Katherine chanted:

"Fearless hearts join to defend their acquaintances! Become the warrior to enforce the battlefield! Synchro-Summon!"

"N-E-K-O, that spells Neko-Polefighter!" the tiger-striped martial artist appeared in their place (ATK: 2200), "And during my last turn, I sent a few spell and trap cards to the graveyard when I summoned Neko-Warrior! And thanks to its card effect, I can add one of those cards to my hand, namely my Neko Polestaff! Then I equip it to Polefighter!" her monster's red bo-staff was replaced with a lilac-colered one, "And thanks to her special ability, it can't be destroyed by battle when she's equipped with an equip spell! So let's go; Neko-Polefighter, attack Divine with Neko Power-Pole Extention!" the polefighter raised her staff upward. And as the pole extended to great lenghs, she swiftly swung it down at Divine, "Say bye-bye to your Hyper Psychic Blaster!"

"Actually, let's not; I activate the Draining Shield trap card!" after the face-down flipped open, Divine's black laser was replaced with a high-tech shield and, without a second too soon, placed it between him and the advanced battle staff, "When Draining shield is activated, i'm awarded with a one-turn only defense shield, which cancels out you attack..." Divine pushed the staff away with the shield and, because of how long and heavy it is, Neko-Polefighter lost he balanced and fell over, "and I gain life points equal to that monster's ATK power.

**Kat: 1000 (30)**

**Divine: 9400**

"Mrrooww, then I guess i'll end my turn," Kat replied disheartedly.

"And I'll start mine," Divine holstered the black laser drew a card on the sleek silver laser in his left hand, "I activate the spell card Spellbook Inside the Pot," both player drew three cards, and Divine leered, "This much be my lucky day; I activate the continuous-spell card known as '7'!" when he played the spell, a giant slot machine; the middle slot turned to a 7, "But that's not all, i'll play two more '7' cards!" and one after the other, the left and right slots spun to the same number, "And when all three '7' cards are on my field, they're instantly destroyed!" the entire machine exploded into smitherines.

"But why did you do all that, mrrow?" Katherine questioned.

"Don't you know? When all three of my '7's are destroyed by thier own effect, I get to 3 more cards," Divine drew thrice, "And not only that; I also get 700 life points for each card destroyed," his was surounded by a green aura.

_"Ka-ching, ka-ching! In just one turn, Divine's drawn three card, dwarn three cards again, and gained a jackpot of 2100 life points!"_

**Kat: 1000 (30)**

**Divine: 11500**

"And there's still more to come; for instance, this Synchro Boost i'm equipping to gives me 500 additional ATK points and an extra level," Divine was surged with a lightning-blue torrent of electricity.

Hyper Psychic Blaster: (ATK: 3500/Lvl: 10)

"Next I activate the Block Attack spell card, whic switches your furry little polefighter to DEF mode!" Neko Polefighter knealt to the floor on one knee, holding her staff up in front of her for protection (DEF: 2600), "Why would I do that, you ask? It's because of Blaster's special ability," Divine aimed the white blaster at Polefighter, "With the silver blaster i'm holding, I can inflict pircing damage to a defending monster, meaning when I attack a monster in DEF position, the difference is dealt as battle damage to your life points!"

"Oh, this is gonna hurt..."

"That's the idea, Katherine; Go, Cyber-Piercer!" Divine blasted the polefighter with burst of emerald-green psychic energy. She was only able to take the bolw only for the damage leftover to go throught Katherine. She knelt to the floor, wondering when this bad dream is going to end.

**Kat: 100 (30)**

**Divine: 11500**

"And did I mention the Hyper Psychic Blaster's _other_ special ability gets automatically activated? You see, whenever I attack a defending monster with fewer DEF points, I gain life points equal to that amount," Divine was once again surounded by the same green aura.

**Kat: 100 (30)**

**Divine: 12400

* * *

**

Ken: "Katherines only got 100 life points to her name! If she takes one more direct hit from that Psychic Blaster, it's all over!"

* * *

"Get up, Kathherine! Get up and retaliate!" Divine sneered under his helmet, "Ge up on your feet so I can knock you back down! The only person you can rely on now is yourself!"

Hesitantly, the Neko duelist rose up and tried to shake off the pain, "I-it's my turn! This card can be special-summoned if I have another Neko moster on my field! So come on out, Neko-Cleric!" the cat-eared chaplain appeared in DEF mode (DEF: 2000), "Next I play the Reload spell card, which lets me suffle and re-draw the cards in my hand!" Katherine added his hand to her deck, shuffled it up, and drew five cards, "And thanks to Cleric's special ability, she gives me an additional 300 life points!" the cleric raised her rosary up and summoned a shower of golden stardust over Katherine.

**Kat: 400 (29)**

**Divine: 12400**

"Next I summon (5D's)Neko-Girl also in DEF mode!" the older doppleganger appeared next to Neko Cleric (DEF: 1500), "Then, I can special-summon this card if there are 5 or more spell and trap cards in my graveyard! Say hello to Neko-Maid!" the brown-furred, black-maiden neko appeared in DEF as well (DEF: 2000), "Next, I activate the spell card named (5D's)Neko-Gift!" Katherine played the spell that decipts a young neko-mimi holding out a wrapped present, "When this card is activated, I can draw one card for each Neko monster I have on the field! And since I now have 4 on my field, I can draw 4 cards from my deck!" Katherine drew four times, "And that means another 300 lifwe points from Neko-Cleric!"

**Kat: 700 (25)**

**Divine: 12400**

"Now I activate the spell card, Swords of Revealing Light! That means you can't attack for 3 more turn!" decending from the skies, three giant swords of light flew down and embeded themselves into the ground around Divine. All the while Neko-Cleric gave Katherine yet another 300 life points.

**Kat: 1000 (25)**

**Divine: 12400**

"And that ends my turn!"

_"Miss Cheshire's put up wall after wall of defense to protect her life points! She's got three turns to make a gamechanger! But will it be enough to fend off against Divine's psychic onslaugh?"_

"She needs a whole lot more that that, and then some," Divine started his turn, "First I play the spell Pot of Greed," he drew twice from his deck, "Next up, I activate the spell card known as Decentralization Prism!" Divine chuckled as he was enveloped in a veil of light. He then separated into lights of red, blue, yellow, and green. When the light faded, Katherine was now facing four Hyper Psychic Blasters!"

* * *

Ken: "Man! Divine just multiplied into four monsters! Just what kind of card is that?"

Nathan: "That's the Decentralization Prism spell card. It's so powerful that very few were mass-produced."

* * *

"When I only have one monster on the field, Decentralization Prism allows me to call out special monsters know as Archetype Prism Tokens, which has the same status as the monster chosen to summon it!"

Hyper Psychic Blaster: (ATK: 3500/DEF: 2500/Lvl: 10/ x 4)

"You still can't get through my swords! You still have to wait 3 turns before they go away! Meany!" Katherine threw another raspberry.

"Yes, I know. That's why i'm going to play this: the continuous-spell card Psychic Invigoration!" Divine slapped the sell card onto his silver blaster, "And thanks to this card, my life points are gonna keep going and going, because from now on, during the End Phase of my turn, my Psychic Invigoration spell card boosts my life points by 200 for each level of Psychic monster on my field! I get 4 level-10 monsters on the field now so, you do the math!"

"Bit if you have 4 level-10 monsters, that means..." Katheine tried using her fingers to count up the results-

"10 levels x 4 monsters add up to 40 total level psychics! And 40 levels x 200 life points comes to a grand total of 8000 life points! Which means I now get 8000 life points every turn if my monsters don't attack!"

**Kat: 1000 (25)**

**Divine: 20400**

As Divine's turn came to an end, one of the swords dissapeared.

Swords of Revealing Light: (2)

Things aren't looking better for Katherine than it was since the duel started. But she knew if sge drew the right card, she can turn it all around. All she needs is time. She started her turn, "I summon Chibi Neko-Maid in DEF mode (DEF: 500). That's it for this turn."

"That's all you can do for that turn," Divine crowed as he started this turn, "And I'm about to do a whole lot more, thanks to Pot of Sanctity, which lets me draw 6 more cards!" Divine was the only one who can draw from his deck, since Katherine held a total of six cards already, "And now that my deck is replenished, I can give my monsters even more firepower! Starting with this card, the Neon Laser Blaster equip-spell, boosting my ATK points by 500!" after Divine played the spell card, his battery-pack was replaced with another, this one holding a pair of long-barreled laser-blasters, "And thanks to my tokens' special ability, whatever the original monster gains, they inherit from that same monster," the three prism tokens were equipped with the same armaments, as well as its effect.

Hyper Psychic Blaster: (ATK: 4000 x 4)

"And thet doesn't stop there. Next I equip myself with another equip-spell known as Evolution-2! That doubles the ATK increments of another equip-spell armed with the equipped monster," as Divine's armor glowed an ominous violet, so did the tokens.

Hyper Psychic Blaster: (ATK: 4500 x 4)

"Next, I activate the Lightning Vortex spell card! By discarding one card from my hand, all your monsters are wiped out from the field," after meeting Divine's simple requirements, several bolts of lightning exploded from te heavens and destroyed every monster on Katherine's field. When the smoke cleared, only Neko-Polefighter remained.

"Sorry, Divine, but since Neko-Polefighter was about to be destroyed by a card effect, I can remove Neko-Polestaff to save her! I you'll have to do a lot better than that!"

"And do better I shall; I play the spell Smashing Grounds, to destroy the last of your monsters!" Divine fired a torrent at the tiger-girl and oblitterated her, "Then I place two cards face-down and end my turn; but not before the effect of my Psychic Invigoration kicks in!"

**Kat: 1000 (25)**

**Divine: 28400**

Swords of Revealing Light: (1)

"Only two turns to go, keep hiding behind those pitiful defenses; I got all the time _and_ life points in the world," Divine chuckled sinisterly.

"Alright, it's my turn!" Katherine drew, 'All I need is one more turn to play the card I need!' "I activate A Feather of the Phoenix!" she slapped the spell card onto her disk, "By discarding one card from my hand, I can remove one card from my graveyard from play, and place it at the top of my deck!" after exchanging cards, Katherine finally had the card she needed. All she has to do is wait, "And that's it for this turn!"

"'That's it' is right, because with my psychic army ready and waiting, it's only a matter of time before this duel comes to a close!" Divine started his turn, "First I activate my two face-downs, which happened to be two more Psychic Rejuvenation traps!" the gap in Divine and Katherine's life points seem to get wider and wider.

**Kat: 1000 (25)**

**Divine: 36400**

"And with that, I end my turn! And that means your Swords of Revealing Light are all out of power!"

Swords of Revealing Light: (0)

**Kat: 1000 (25)**

**Divine: 44400**

"It's your move, Miss Cheshire; not that you could do anything."

* * *

Rico: "Divine's got over 40,000 life points now!"

Ken: "I don't know if Kat's got what it takes at this point! This duel may as well be good as over!"

* * *

"This duel isn't over until the last card is played! And it's my turn!" Katherine called out, "And with this card, I'm definitely gonna turn this duel around! I place one card face-down! And next I activate the spell card Reversal Quiz!" the moment she played the spell card, her only reverse card was shattered instantly, "When this card activates, all card on my field and in my hand all get sent to the graveyard! Then, I get to look at the top card of my deck! And if I can guess if it's a monster, trap, or spell card-"

"Your life points get exchanged with mine. Is that it?" Divine interupted, "Looks like you finally have a decent card to use against me. But remember, you only have 1/3 chance of picking the right card. Are you sure you can handle such a gamble?"

"You bet! And I sure that the card on top is a monster card!" Katherine laid her hand on top of her deck... 'Alright, this match depends on the card i'm going to pick. I hope it's a monster... no, I'm sure it's a monster!' "N-E-K-O! That spells..." she swipped the card from her deck, and relied on all hope that she got the card she needed...

"Well, aren't you going to show me the card you drew?"

"..." Katherine just stood silently and flipped the card over.

"It's a spell card! Looks like you haven't got what it takes to make it in the real world after all!"

* * *

Ken: "I don't believe it! That spell Reversal Quiz was Kat's last chance!"

Rico: "I Divine hits her with a direct attack, it's all over!"

* * *

Divine knew who the victor is even before this duel started. He managed to gain over 40,000 life points, get four level-10 monsters out on the field, and instantly rid his opponent's field bare. He was savoring every second as he watched Katherine leak tears out of her watering eyes. All he needs to do is lay one more direct hit and this match is over.

"Time to bring out the heavy artillery!" Divine started his turn, and smirked under his helmet, "Perfect; just the card I need to finish my combo: I activate the (5D's)Phoenix Force spell card!" a card despicts a shadowed Psychic Lifetrancer enveloped over a giant bird made of fire, "When activated, I can pay all but 100 of my life points, and all those points are transfered to a level-7 or higher monster on my field, namely my Hyper Psychic Blaster!" the four Divines surrounded themselves with a geyser of flames to boost thier power.

**Kat: 1000 (24)**

**Divine: 100**

Hyper Psychic Blaster: (ATK: 48800 x 4)

"And to top it off, the card to complete my Psychic Blaster combo: the spell (5D's)Dark Phoenix Force!" that card despcits Hyper Psychic Blaster enveloped around a firebird with black flames, "With this, I can select one level-8 or higher psychic on my field and destroy all others, adding their ATK points to that monster!" all the prism tokens were incinerated by the dark fires, which then surrounded Divine. His power was now unmesurable than ever before.

Hyper Psychic Blaster: (ATK: 195200)

* * *

Ken: "Divine's lost it now!"

Nathan: "If his attack succeeds, there's no telling what will happen to Katherine!"

Rico: "I can't look!"

* * *

This is it. Divine was the strongest monster on the field. Katherine has no spell. No traps. No defense. She has not been this close to a panic ever. As she watched Divine charging up for one final attack, the only she can do now is grovel wait for her upcoming demise.

"I WANNA GO HOME! I DON'T WANNA DO THIS ANYMORE! LEAVE ME ALONE! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!"

"Cry all you want, but it won't help any better. Let this loss today give you a change in perception. Say goodbye!" instantly, all charges went off as all erupted laser zeroed in on Katherine, and created a massive explosion unlike anyone in the audience had ever see. It sent shockwaves even more powerful that the powers of the Black Rose could create.

Katherine slowly opened her eyes to realize that she hasn't felt any force form Divines blasters. She looked up to see none other than her older sister, wrapping her in a tight embrace.

"Gabe... G-G-Gabe," the fallen neko whimpered, "He hurt you..."

"No, Kitten, it's not me..." Katherine looked over Gabriellas shoulder, and saw something she wished she never had. Jason Hutchins stood a few feet away from her and Gabriella, arm spread out. His entire body was smoked and small, numerous rips invaded his clothes. It didn't take her long to realize that Jason has taked the full brunt of Divine's assault. He stood silently just long enough to collapse.

"JASON!" Katherine freed herself from Gabriella and rushed over to the scarred satellite. Just seeing him hurt like that filled her heart with even more anguish. Soon, she began to bust out in tears. She never saw it coming. She had no idea a person such as her opponent could do such a thing to someone. Now, because of her, one of the nicest people she had ever met may be gone.

She was so upset that she didn't notice Divine coming up to them, with his blasters still in hand, "Maybe this will teach you to crash other peoples' private parties," he charged up his data blaster, "Before I destroy you both, remember this: if you want to make it in the real world, you had better learn to think inside the box. Say your prayers-"

"That's enough..." but his words were interupted by those of another. Both he and the frightened kitten looked back to see a red-headed man in a brown trenchcoat, "I didn't bring you here to the Fortune Cup to cause havoc, Divine. Your work here is done for the day..."

* * *

**Yusei: Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: What are you up to this time, Goodwin? You're not one to give second chances unless you're gonna get something out of it. Just what do you wan't with Luna anyway? Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator!**

**(A/N: I'm going to update the characters with my creation cards for this series. Just keep looking on my Bio.)**

**Please Review.**


	31. Spirit Caller: Part 1

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

("_") Audience

(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."

* * *

"Professor? Hello? It's me, Lazar. I know you're in here. We need your help with the next duel." the story begins within a pitch-dark chamber. The window shed enough light only to reveal a mysterious person in academic robes, in which Lazar was speaking to, "You have to think about redecorating; maybe some track lighting?"

"The darkness helps with my preparation," the stranger said, "And as a faithful servant of Yliaster, I know the darkness can only be illuminated by the dragon star. How may I be of service?"

"I'm so glad you asked. Director Goodwin needs your hypnotic powers to tap into the mind of a possible Signer. He thanks you for throwing your first duel to end up in the Loser's Bracket. But now he needs you to perform.

"Whom shall I duel..." the dim light showed a smirk on the man's face.

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 28: Spirit Caller**

**Part 1: Return to the Spirit World**

**

* * *

**

When we last left our heroes last time, Divine was stopped from committing mass murder from the mysterious man in the trenchcoat.

"I didn't bring you here to the Fortune Cup to cause havoc, Divine. Your work here is done."

Divine isn't taking it to well. But as much as he was yearning, he must do what his master said. So, he turned away from Katherine and Jason and walked off to the exit, but not until uttering two words: "I quit."

After all that happened, the audience went accounting the match.

"So he decided to forfeit after all that, huh?" Ken cooled, "At least we don't have to worry about him for awhile."

"I'm afraid it's not that simple, Kenichi," Nathan pointed out, "Divine got a free pass to the semi-finals the moment Jason stepped in and interfered with the duel," Nathan saw Rico shivering from Divine's actions and tried to comfort him.

* * *

**Later...**

The scene changes to another room inside the stadium. Jason was lying on a futon in clinic, with Gabriella and Katherine standing by his side.

"Is he going to be okay?" Gabriella asked the nurse.

"I don't know for certain. He appears to have slipped into a coma from that attack he took. And judging from the amount of damage he took, it may take weeks, maybe months for him to come into consciousness again."

"But he has to wake up!" Katherine cried, "Jason's too strong to let something like that stop him!"

"I'm sorry, but it will only take time. A coma isn't like falling asleep and waking up in the morning. We will just have to wait and see," and with that, the nurse left.

Katherine started to cry again. But like last time, Gabriella hugged her and tried to comfort her, "Let's just pray for him, Neko. That's all we can do right now..."

* * *

**Meanwhile...**

"We have a special announcement!" the MC stated, "Yes, the rumors you heard are true! Listen up, first-round losers! Don't head for the exit just yet! Rex Goodwin, our Master of Ceremonies, has set up a Loser's Bracket for the first round! That means if you lost, that means you might get a second chance to duel again!" the holo-sphere was surrounded by images of all who've lost during the tournament.

"Alright!" Leo cheered, "My Fortune Cup's not over yet!"

"Uh, technically-"

"Save your 'technically' for the blogs, Dex."

"Uh, what Dex means is _my_ name is up there," Luna pointed out.

Leo face-faulted again.

Form the lounge, Yusei heard the announcement. He became more suspicious than before, 'What are you up to, Goodwin? You're not the type who gives second chances unless you're going to get something out of it.'

Back at the stands, Leo started to look over his dueling deck, "Now just you watch! I'm gonna win for certain this time, Luna! ...I'm gonna need your hair-braces though, okay?"

"Get you own!"

"Aw c'mon, Luna!"

Suddenly the lights then dimmed, "Now take your seats! We're about to give two of these duelists the opportunity!" the MC announced, "First we drew two lucky players, and I assure you it was random, OK? And first off is... everyone's favorite green-haired girl! She's fast, she's feisty, and she has to be to be home before her bedtime! Give it up for the next generation of dueling superstars! Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you, Miss Luna!" a just-lit spotlight suddenly shone over the child known as Luna... the real one!

* * *

**Back at the lounge...**

"Luna's dueling?"

"I'm guessing they finally got the right kid for the match, huh?" Yusei turned to see Greiger entering the room, "You know, but the end of the duel we had, I didn't think the boy was half-bad. I can't wait to see what his sister's got.

* * *

Back at the stands, the crowd chanted Luna's name, over and over again. But Luna wasn't used to this kind of attention. And that wasn't half of her worries... "But... I can't duel."

"Can't duel?" Tanner said, "But Luna, it was your name on the invitation. You belong here!"

"But I'm her!" Leo debated, "She can't go out there and duel!"

"Leo, I'm afraid that the jig is up, young man," Yanagi said, "The crowd wants your sister."

"I can't! You guys don't understand," Luna pleaded, "Something strange happens to me whenever I duel!"

"Not again! Are you gonna start that stuff about duel spirits?" Leo laid back, "You're getting a little too old to play 'Spirit Caller' again."

"Spirit-calling is not a game, and if the only way to prove it is to go out there, well then I guess I have to go out there and duel."

"OK, but if you win, I get to be you for the next round!"

"Wow, thanks for the support, Leo," Luna said cynically. With her pink duel disk hugged close to her, she went on her way to the arena, with the audience still chanting her name.

"Good luck," Yanagi called, "Now Leo, what's this about your sister hearing duel spirits?"

"Oh, it's nothing."

"You sure?"

"Mmhm, she always does this. We'll be dueling and then she's all like this: 'I feel funny! You hear that? It's duel spirits!' She's just afraid I'd beat her."

"I've seen pretty weird stuff, but-"

"Aw c'mon, Tanner! If that were true then, well, I don't know, but Luna would be a whole lot more important than she is."

* * *

In Goodwin's private box, Jack Atlas saw the next duel about to go underway, "So tell me, why do you think she's a Signer, Goodwin?"

"Well, for starters, the D-Tector picked her out of the crowd. Trust me, she's a lot more important than anyone knows, even her own brother. Once she duels the professor, then we'll know without a doubt. Let's see if Zixzix is ready to monitor her," Goodwin flipped on the holo-vid to speak to the top engineer, only to see the backside of him.

_"Going fast, makes me feel alive; my heart beats... huh? Oh, Director! Zixzix reporting for duty, sir!" _he picked up the detector and showed it to Goodwin, _"Just look at this! If the needle exceeds this yellow section, there's no doubt our little Luna is a Signer! More Signers means more energy! More energy means more Ener-D! And then we'll have enough power to-" (fwip)_

"He really means to get out more..."

"He's not the only one," Isis mumbled under her breath.

"Moving on; Now there's another reason we've been studying this little girl," Goodwin flipped on another holo-vid containing Luna's profile, "8 years ago, she has been admitted to a special hospital saying she can hear duel-spirit voices. Most people would dub her, and others like her, as a Spirit Caller."

"So she has quite the imagination."

"It's a little more complicated than that, Jack. She was a dueling prodigy, and beating our greatest professionals at the age of three. You of all people should know; Isn't that right, Miss Kaiba?"

"I don't need to be reminded of bad memories, old man," Kaiba hissed.

"Continuing; one day, she suddenly colapsed in the middle of a duel and fell into a coma. No one knows why, not even the bast doctors. In fact, there was only one person who believed she would wake up again, and that was her twin brother, Leo. And then for no apparent reason, she woke up a month later."

"That's a great movie-of-the-week, Goodwin, but who cares?"

"You should care, Mr. Atlas," Lazar entered, "What got our attention was what she said after she woke up: she said she wasn't asleep. She said she spent that entire month in the Duel Monster's spirit world."

"Yeah, right," Isis protested, "And i'm a Blue-Eyes White Dragon."

"No surprise that _you _would stray from the supernatural, Kaiba; just like your legal guardian. But we have reason to believe she told the truth. For instance, she know of the ancient dragon star legend. In fact, she knew thing that even we did not, finding clues to unlocking the mysteries of the People of the Star. And more, like the incredible power of the ancient Crimson Dragon."

"But a few days after awakening, her memory began to fade like it was a dream. Now she remembers nothing of the spirit world," Rex continued, "Leaving us one choice: to make her duel and go bak to that world. Only then will we know she is a Signer. And with her help, we will unleash the Crimson Dragon... and save our troubled world," with that, Goodwin switched off the holo-vid.

* * *

Back at the arena, the duel was about to begin, "Now, entering the arena, the little duelist who could, the pint-sized prodegy, Luna!"

Smoke erupted from one side of the dueling field, only to blow away to reveal the green-haired girl. She thought as she installed her disk onto her wrist, 'Okay, Luna, nothing to worry about; just the biggest duel of your life on national television. Hmm, I wonder if Yusei's watching?'

"And now, her opponent, the Dean of the Deck, the Brain of the Game, The Professor!" an image of a man with a blank expression appeared on the giant sphere, "He's got a PhD in Psychology, Hypnology and Duel-ology! So Luna better watch out!"

Smoke rose from the other side of the field, to reveal the same person, wearing black-and-orange academic robes. When he first set his sights on the little girl, the first thing he did was bowed and greeted her, "Please to meet you, dear Luna."

"Uh... hi."

"I've heard many things about you. I'm sure this duel will be quite illuminating, don't you think?"

'Doubt it,' but suddenly, Luna heard a strange animal sound, one that went like this: _"Cooo!"_ 'Huh? Kuribon! Why don't you ever talk when Leo's around?'

_"Now, let's get dueling! Remember, only the winner advances; the loser is out for good!"_

"LET'S DUEL!"

**Luna: 4000**

**Professor: 4000**

"Like the blooming lotus, you may go first," the Professor offered.

"Sure, fine; I draw!" Luna started the duel, "And I summon (1) Sunny Pixie(300/400) in DEF mode," a tiny, red-headed pixie-fairy, wearing a yellow jumpsuit, appeared beside Luna in a blue aura."

* * *

Yanagi: "Aw, a fairy! That's adorable!"

Dexter: "Keep it up, Luna!"

* * *

"Your turn, professor."

"And I look forward to it, thank you," the Professor started his turn, "I summon a unique monster known as (4) Symmetry Rorschach(1200/1200)," when he played the card, a spray of black ink squirted out the ground, which instantly took shape of a strange butterfly.

When Luna looked at the card, something in her nerves stirred, 'That card won't let me focus!'

"Luna, think of my Rorschach as if it wer a puddle of rain, or a drop of ink in a lake," the Professor said, "Look at it, and tell me what you see. Tell me if it reminds you of anything. Look into your fears, your dreams, even your memories lost long ago," the monster started to catch Luna's attention, "What do you see when you gaze into the abyss? A friend, perhaps? Your family? Or maybe a far-off place dimming like the candle of time?"

"I... I see..."

'Yes; tell me, Luna; what do you see?'

"...I don't know."

* * *

Yanagi: "It's a crystal skull, I think!"

Dexter: "A moth!"

Leo: '...This professor is a few cards short of a duel deck. What's he doing to Luna?'

* * *

'Look close, Luna... close... look close, Luna. What do you see?'

"Um... I see... a fairy?" as if on command, the ink shifted form according to Luna's thought. What took its place was a blond pixie, wearing a blue jumpsuit.

The fairy reflected exactly to Luna's perception. She giggled at the little girl... But what was thought to be a warm greeting turned out as a ruse. The fairy's adoring face shifted into a gruesome, horrifying corpse which made Luna yelp. Before she can even blink, the Rorschach explodes into a massive array of violet shockwaves which shattered the Sunny Pixie. Luna covered her face trying to block out the waves. When the attack was over, Luna let down her guard to see the monster as it was before: just a puddle of ink shaped like a butterfly.

"Like the catapillar who secludes itself in darkness before becoming a butterfly, you must face your memories. You mist face your fears, and live through them again. Don't be scared."

"...But I'm afraid," Luna shivered.

"You must be brave enough to live through what happened many years ago. I know that you have great power, dear Luna... I know you are a Spirit Caller. I know you can hear the duel spirits."

Luna gasped.

"The others may not believe you but I do. I'll help you return to that place, the Duel Monster Spirit World. Yes, it was real and not some figment of your imagination."

"I... I'm starting to remember, professor."

"I know you are, but for our next stage, you need to trust me. Can you do that? I need... I need you to want to return to the duel spirit world," the Professor's voice pattern became more opiate by the second... "I need you to promise, Luna."

And then it happened. Luna's eyes became blank and distant. She has fallen into the Profesor's calmative trance, "I promise, professor. Take me back."

"Very good. Now follow my instructions: when Symmetry Rorschach dispatched of your fairy, its special ability continues. Would you kindly remove the top card of your deck and reveal it to me?"

Luna did as she told. When she flipped over the card at the top, she came across a face she was well-familiar with, "...Kuribon."

"Thank you for identifying your monster. It will be helpful for the next stage in our little experiment. Now I need you to think back to that scary time when you were in your coma. Try to remember."

'I tried before, but I can't,' Luna wondered, 'There's nothing I remember from it-' but suddenly, her thoughts drifted from reality as she received vision of various scenarios; what she thought she forgot had came back to her, "...I'm remembering..."

* * *

Dexter: "What's wrong, Leo? You look sick."

Leo: "I'm worried about Luna, Dex. What's he doing?"

* * *

"I place two cards face-down. It's your turn," two reverse cards appeared, "Don't be scared, Luna."

"...I draw," Luna mumbled in a monotone voice, "And I summon out (2) Kuribon(300/200)," the monster in question appears nothing more than a simple brown furball. But when it opened its reflective, green eyes. The creature floated over Luna, swaying its rat-like tail, tied up with a glittering red bowtie (ATK: 300).

"That's perfect! I reveal my face-down. It is known as Light to the Depths," the Professor revealed one of his reverse cards, "Like the Northern Star, this card illuminates the path inside of you. Now send the top 5 cards on your deck to the graveyard, then reveal the 6th card, adding it to your hand. And you must play that card as certain as the light itself, or suffer 2000 points of damage. Now then, why don't we begin. Listen to my voice as I count them off. ...and one..."

Luna did as she was told as she removed the top card on her disk, _"Fwip"_

"Good. Now two..."

_"Fwip"_

"Three.."

_"Fwip"_

"Four..."

_"Fwip"_

"Five..."

_"Fwip"_

"And six. Wonderful. Now show me, what's the card you're holding in your hand?"

Luna silently obeyed as she showed the Professor the card, which appeared to be...

"Ah, as I have hoped. The field spell Ancient Forest. You will use it," after Luna inserted the spell into her field slot, twigs and weeds started to grow out of the ground, which rapidly grew into giant trees. Then a green aura surrounded the entire field to add realism to the scene, "This forest is quite a special place. All monsters are switched to ATK mode, and neither one of us can summon or switch a monster to DEF. Even if you were to ATK, your monster would be destroyed once the battle is over," the Professor chuckled, "Some people say this forest resembles... someplace else. Fighting forbidden; secrets revealed; why, it is just like the spirit world!" now that the Professor's little session is almost complete, there is just one more thing he had to do... 'Take us there, Luna. We have work to do..'

* * *

Luna opened her eyes. It took her but a moment to realize that she wasn't on the arena anymore.

She then heard a small giggle coming from above her. The trees rustled to release a clan of small fairies that are hiding withing. One of the fairies flew over and hugged Luna's cheek, which tickled her, "Where am I?" she wondered. Then she saw someone she was very glad to meet: her very own Kuribon.

"Kuribon! Where is this place. It looks so familiar, but I can't remember. I sense it's a safe place, but something feels wrong..."

* * *

Back on the field, the Professor stood face-to-face with Luna, planting a small smirk on his blank face, 'Excellent. Luna has finally traveled to the spirit world.' "My turn," the Professor began, "And I'll be activating my face-down Gestalt Trap, and this particular trap will equip onto your little Kuribon." when the Professor's reverse card flipped up, a small mechanism appeared, equipped with a black iron clamp, 'Let's see how Luna deals with this.' the clamp was fired and sped its way right towards the little furball, ensnaring it in its spiky binds, "Not only are your Kuribon's abilities canceled, but all her points, both ATK and DEF, go to zero, dear Luna."

Kuribon: (ATK: 0/DEF: 0)

* * *

**Meanwhile...**

Luna and Kuribon were walking aimlessly across the forest, trying to find any more sign of civilization, until...

_Clamp!_

Kuribon was suddenly trapped by the iron grip of the Gestalt Trap!

"Kuribon!" Luna cried, "What just happened?"

* * *

**Back in reality...**

"The trees aren't deaf, but they are mute to your crying pleas," the Professor replied as he played a spell from his hand, "I equip Immortal Homeostasis on Kuribon. Now she cannot be destroyed in battle. But sadly, her fate is now worse, for see, she now serves as the architech of your loss. Her original ATK points have been altered; and until they can be restored, you will suffer: 300 points per round, much like the ill-tempered dog who bites your hand whenever you bring food or forage. Now I sacrifice Symmetry Rorschach. And with that removed, I can summon (5) Ido, the Supreme Magical Force(2200/800)!" the floated inkblot suddenly began to grow and take muck greater mass. It soon became...

* * *

**Meanwhile...**

Back at the forest, Luna and Kuribon was still venturing until they heard a threatening roar. Suddenly they were confronted by a giant demonic beast, its glowing interior was completely overshadowed by a veil of darkness (ATK: 2200).

Luna cried out, hoping against hope that someone or something could hear her...

* * *

"Even though Ido will be destroyed if I attack with it, he still returns to my field at the end of every turn. Of course within summoning him, no other monsters will be allowed on my field; a small price to pay."

("Wake up, Luna!")

("She's just standing there!")

_"Could this be it? Is she too scared to duel?"_

_

* * *

_

Amongst the entire crowd, Leo was being more quiet than usual. In fact, his eyes were blank and soulless, just as his sister was.

* * *

"Ido, the Supreme Magical Force, attack Kuribon, and bring forth Luna's Mark of the Dragon,"

The beast answered by raising a giant claw and crashing it right onto Kuribon, who shattered into pixels. In return, the monster disappeared as well.

**Luna: 1800**

**Professor: 4000**

"Of course, with Kuribon still equipped onto my little trap, she's not destroyed, but survives. And next round, she'll be destroyed and survive again, and again until you get me what I need. Now think, Luna. Think. Think about the spirit world. Think about what was revealed to you. Think about the Crimson Dragon," his voice be came more and more narcotic...

"Think..., think..., THINK... THINK..."

* * *

_**"TELL ME ABOUT THE SPIRIT WORLD!"**_

The booming voice caused the wind to blow as it rustled the trees around the little girl.

"No! This world is supposed to be a safe place!" Luna cried, "You can't harm me here!" but that fact was then disproved, as Ido slowly regenerated in front of Luna and Kuribon, "But how did that happened?"

* * *

"Did you forget already? Ido returns to my field whenever it's destroyed," the Professor chuckled, "It's your turn, Luna. And don't neglect all the progress we made."

"...I draw," the girl began.

"And don't forget: you lose 300 points of damage due to the effect of Immortal Homeostasis."

* * *

Luna was zapped with a surge of dark energy.

**Luna: 1500**

**Professor: 4000**

**

* * *

**

"I summon my monster (3) Sunlight Unicorn(1800/1000)," in a flash of light, a white unicorn with a mane of fiery blue fur, also on its tail and his ankles, appeared (ATK: 1800), "And now I equip Horn of the Unicorn on my Sunlight Unicorn," after Luna played the equip-spell, horse's silver horn collided with a separate golden one, in which its combined energies created a new three-pronged horn made of glowing crystal. The new horn boosted its ATK power by 700 points.

Sunlight Unicorn: (ATK: 2500)

* * *

Confronting the horrific shadow, Luna started to lose hope. Just then, a jet of glowing light sped its way between them. It was Sunlight Unicorn coming to the rescue. But that did not end there...

_"Luna... Luna..."_

Said person heard a soothing, motherly voice calling out to her, "Who is it? Who's out there?"

_"...Luna. You have finally returned to fulfill your promise."_

"What promise?"

_"To protect the world of the duel spirits, from the forces of evil."_

"But I'm just a little kid. What can I do?"

_"...You can come with me."_

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**

* * *

**

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Sunny Pixie**

**Stats: [Spellcaster / Tuner] LV1 ATK/300 DEF/ 400**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: If this card is sent to the Graveyard for the Synchro Summon of a LIGHT Synchro Monster, gain 1000 Life Points**

**(2) Kuribon**

**Stats: [Fairy/Effect] LV1 ATK/ 300 DEF/200**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: If this card was selected as an attack target by your opponent's monster, you can activate this effect during damage calculation. You take no Battle Damage from this battle, your opponent gains Life Points equal to the attacking monster's ATK, and then you return this card to your hand.**

**(3) Sunlight Unicorn**

**Stats: [Beast/Effect] LV4 ATK/1800 DEF/1000**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: Once per turn, during your Main Phase, you can reveal the top card of your Deck. If it is an Equip Spell Card, add it to your hand. If it is not, place it on the bottom of your Deck.**

**(4) Symmetry Rorschach**

**Stats: [Spellcaster/Effect] LV3 ATK/ 1200 DEF/1200**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: If this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle, reveal the top card of your opponent's Deck.**

**(4) Ido, the Supreme Magical Force**

**Stats: [Fiend/Effect] LV3 ATK/ 2200 DEF/800**

**Attribute: DARK**

**Effect: You cannot Summon monsters. You can only control 1 "Ido the Supreme Magical Force". If this card is destroyed by a card effect and sent to the Graveyard, Special Summon it from your Graveyard during the next turn's Standby Phase and destroy all other monsters you control.**

**

* * *

**

**Luna: Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: I'm in a strange place and I don't know how I got here! What promise is that voice talking about, and how does it know who I am? And why is my brother have to be involved in this? Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator!**


	32. Spirit Caller: Part 2

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."

**Luna: Now let's get up to speed with YuGiOh 5D's!: Goodwin has set up a Loser's Bracket, meaning that two losers can get a second chance to advance through the Fortune Cup; and it came down to me and a Psychiatrist called The Professor. That guy was so weird: he somehow know that I'm a Spirit Caller, a person who can see Duel Monster spirits, and then in the middle of a duel, I ended up in a strange forest with my Kuribon, being chased by some giant shadow-monster! Then I heard some strange voice saying I have a promise to keep. What does she mean by that? Let's hop on, rev it up, and find out!"

* * *

**

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 29: Spirit Caller**

**Part 2: Fulfilling a Promise

* * *

**

Back from where we last left off, our young Spirit Caller met a voice unlike anyone she had ever met or heard of.

_"Luna, you've come back. I knew you would one day return to us, Luna," _the voice said,_ "I knew you wouldn't forget the promise you made. You do remember, don't you?"_

"This is not happening..." Luna hoped.

_"You promised you would protect us here in the spirit world."_

"I think you got the wrong person! Who are you?"

Just then, the shadowy monster, Ido the Supreme Magical Ruler, interfered with another loud roar. The Sunlight Unicorn decided it is time to fight when it galloped forward and leap towards the magical demon, illuminating its darkness with its Horn of the Unicorn.

**Luna: 1500**

**Professor: 3700

* * *

**

"...I broke through," Luna's opponent, The Professor, smiled. Ido may have been destroyed, but Sunlight followed due to Ancient Forest's effect.

* * *

"Who are you? What's going on?" Luna cried out to the strange voice, "Whoever you are, you are really freaking me out!" the crossfire of the two monsters ended when both monsters disappeared, "Sunlight Unicorn... No. This isn't real. None of it's real. It's all a dream!"

* * *

Back in the real world, the Professor chuckled as he was pleased at the progress he was making with the poor girl, "Hear my voice; let it reach you," he whispered, "Right now your spirit is traveling through the spirit world. Tell me everything. Tell me the secrets of that world you are in."

* * *

'What has that guy done with her?' Yusei watch the entire thing from the competitors' lounge, 'I gotta do something," he got up where he was sitting beside Greiger and started his way to the arena.

* * *

"Each time the Horn of the Unicorn is sent to the graveyard, it is returned to the top of my deck," Luna mumbled as she meet her requirements, "And I can now activate the spell card Emergency Assistance from my hand. This allows me to summon one monster that you destroyed this turn. I summon Sunlight Unicorn," in a flash of light, the unicorn returned to Luna's field.

"Well, I didn't forsee this development," the Professor grunted.

"If the card at the top of my deck is a spell card, I can use Sunlight Unicorn's special ability to add the card to my hand," Luna returned the equip-spell from her deck back into her hand.

"This is most frustrating," the Professor growled.

"I equip my mystic steed with Horn of the Unicorn," the crystal horn once again was armed onto the unicorn's forehead, "I place 2 cards face-down. It is your turn."

* * *

In a flash of light, Sunlight Unicorn returned as if it wasn't destroyed in the first place, "Sunlight Unicorn! What happened to you earlier? Where'd you go?" bus as certain as the unicorn, Ido reappeared, towering over Luna and her monsters.

"Uh, pretty voice from earlier, is that big creepy shadow thing with you?"

The beast raised a clawed hand, ready to strike the party.

_"Luna, use your Sunlight Unicorn to escape!"_ the voice said.

Luna did as told as she mounted her steed. It quickly galloped away just in time to escape the claw crashing down to earth.

Luna kept going and going through the Ancient Forest. Ans as Luna can see, the tree started to wither away, until nothing was left on the bare branches. The skies were also clouded in darkness, "What happened to all the trees earlier? What's going on?"

_"An evil force is attempting to cross the void and access the spirit world,"_ the voice said, _"It yearns to corrupt and twist this place; to harness its power for malicious purposes."_

"Malicious purposes, an evil force... that's scary," the chase ended when Luna's unicorn stopped at a large barren clearing, the only landmark being a giant mountain. Luna dismounted and started to look around, "...Hello?"

_"I'm here Luna," _the voice sounded very closer to Luna. In fact, the voice came from the giant crag, which embedded a skeleton of a dragon of some sort, _"I an sealed away in this granite prison. I've been waiting for your return."_

"I don't get it. What do you want from me?" Luna took a closer look at the fossil, "That dragon..." fortunately, that was all it took to trigger something in her mind, "Hand on a sec! That dragon looks familiar!" she exclaimed, "It's you! It's... _Ancient Fairy Dragon!" _

_"We meet again!" the _dragon's voice greeted, _"It's time to fulfill your promise, or your brother's spirit may be lost here forever."_

"My brother? What's he got to do with this? Where is he?"

"Lost between your world and the spirit world," the dragon answered, "Now, allow me to take you back to when you first came here, to help you remember the promise you made, to help save your world and your brother's spirit..."

The background then changed to a serene meadow, with various flowers blooming from the grass. It was there where Luna saw a three-year-old version of herself, along with other of her spirit friends. One in particular was a humanoid serpentine dragon with sky-blue scales. Her golden armor held snug on her chest and crowned on her head. And she had the most beautiful orange eyes which reflected the illusionous sunlight.

_"Almost done..." little Luna was putting the finishing touches on a crown she was making out of flowers. When she was finished, she placed it ontop of her Kuribon. Who 'coo'ed with happiness, But a few moments later, the crown withered away, That's weird. The flowers, they wilted..."_

_"The spirit world is in danger, Luna," the blue dragon replied, "An evil force is trying to gain access to this place, to take over, With sinister intent, this force reaches reaches out to squeeze the heart of our beloved land. As the darkness grows in strength, the light of the spirit world begins to fade. And the beauty of this realm will be replaced by sorrow and despair."_

_"Can't you stop it?" the three-year-old asked._

_"You are a Spirit Caller, dear Luna. You are the bridge that connects your world with ours. Stay with us, Luna. Protect us, and in return, we can help you. We feel your sadness, my child. We know that you are lonely. You are lonely, aren't you?"_

_Luna had no idea the dragon knew. She really was lonely, "Kinda, my mom and dad are always away, on important business trips and stuff like that, and I don't go to school with other kids," but the last thing she said made her want to tear up, "and my silly egghead brother only thinks about himself! ...Okay, Ancient Fairy Dragon! I will stay here and protect you! I'll protect everyone!"_

_The fairy dragon hasn't been more happier to hear that, "Thank you, Luna! And I will make sure that you will never feel lonely again!" her sparkling butterfly wings making a heavenly chime each time they move, the dragon glided towards the little girl, and covered her and the other fairies in a sparkling light. That was the day the promise was made..._

"I remember now..." Luna grasped the lost memory, "I came here several years ago. And I made a promise. I said that I would protect you. But then..."

* * *

"Luna, Luna!" Yusei made it to the arena floor, trying to find a way to end the match. But no matter how many times he called for her, Luna didn't respond, the same thing with the Professor, 'This is weird. It's like they're both hypnotized or something. What is going on?"

* * *

Back at the stands, Leo was still unconscious. Especially after he collapsed out of his seat.

"Hey, what's wrong? Can you hear me, pal?"

"Leo, this is no time for a nap!"

Tanner try to shake him awake, but with no luck, "He's out. Did he just fainted?"

"I don't know."

"Let's take him to the First-Aid station!"

* * *

_"Luna... Luna"_

"That's it!" Luna realized, "I heard Leo's voice shouting my name and... and I ran as fast as I could. I said that my brother has been calling out to me, but I think I've been calling out to him, somehow. I was scared. I was afraid I couldn't protect you by myself, so I just ran. After that, I tried so hard to forget about you, I blocked you all out and then I-"

A mighty roar separated her from her thoughts as she was once again confronted by the Supreme Magical Ruler...

* * *

Back in the real world, Yusei was still trying to figure out how to reverse the duelists' trances, 'It's gotta be that Professor creep. He's doing something to her. But what?' he spotted something glowing at the corner of his eye. When he took a closer look, he was shocked to see what was on her arm, "No way! She has a mark like mine!"

* * *

Back at the clinic, Katherine and Gabriella saw something as well. On Jason's right arm is a strange red marking...

* * *

'Okay, wherever they are, they're not here,' Yusei thought, 'Their bodies might be, but their spirits...'

"It's my turn," the Professor called, still in a stupor.

* * *

_"I draw!"_

"Wh-what?" Luna heard an ominous voice that chilled her spine. Suddenly, a strange shadow came into view under Ido. The shadow soon formed into none other than The Professor himself, "I can't believe that I have actually crossed over. I have finally left my body behind..." his eyes snapped open to complete an evil and twisted face, "I HAVE ENTERED THE SPIRIT WORLD!"

"What do you want?" Luna protested.

""You are much more important than you know my dear," he replied, "Now be a good girl; use your Signer power and reveal to me the secrets of this wonderful realm. Lend me your power."

"Okay, I have no idea what you want from me, but you need to leave!"

The Professor leaked out from beneath his feet a creeping, venomous shadow which spread and expanded, corroding everything it touches.

"Leave the spirit world alone!" but the girl's pleas cried on deaf ears as the shadow sapped any little mana from the earth, causing it to crumble, 'I can't do this,' Luna grimaced, 'I can't protect the spirit world. I'm scared and I wanna go home now! But then if I leave, Ancient Fairy Dragon said Leo could be lost here forever!' "Leo!"

_"...Luna. I hear you..."_

"Leo? Where are you? C'mon, get me out of here! Please, Leo! I'm scared! Stop messing around!"

_"Luna.. Luna..."_

"Do something, Leo!" then a small fountain of water squirted out of the dry soil right at Luna's feet. It made a small puddle that made a crystal-clear reflection of her. But as Luna bent over to take a closer look, she realized that it wasn't her at all...

_"Luna, down here,"_ it was her twin brother, Leo.

"Leo, is that you?"

_"It's me, Luna. I'm here."_

"So c'mon! Get me out of this place, quick!"

_"I can't. I can't bring you back, but I saw your promise to the spirits."_

"I was _three_!"

_"I know, but you're connected to the spirits now, Luna. Don't worry. Know that I'm by your side. I'll protect you so that you can protect them..."_ that was the last thing Leo said, before his reflection was once again overtaken by Luna's.

"Leo... LEO!" the child's cry was tuned out by a sound of thunder from the dark clouds, followed by a flash of lightning and a bolt which striked the crag and sent a giant piece of rock falling right behind her.

_"We are under attack, Luna,"_ the dragon warned from her prison, _"Now is the time you must defend us."_

But Luna was uncertain if she could. It was her against an unknown force that could possibly destroy her. She was chosen by the Ancient Fairy Dragon to become this world's guardian. If she doesn't have the strength to protect the spirit world, then what then? ...Then she remembered what her brother said. She wasn't alone. She has her brother Leo by her side, and that bond gave her strength. It also gave her confidence as she slowly stood up and glanced at the dragon fossil, "I won't let you down, Ancient Fairy Dragon. I will fight to protect the spirit world, and save my brother's spirit!" the Spirit Caller turned to confront the mad professor. She raised her arm and her duel disks appeared. Also, her monsters Sunlight Unicorn and Kuribon appeared each in a ray of light.

"I reveal my face-down card! It is the trap, Pixie Ring!" one of Luna's reverse cards flipped open, "There are two monsters on my field and they're both in ATK mode! So I can use the power of my Pixie Ring, to form a barrier arounf the weaker one!" a circle of sparkling light energy, "You can't attack Kurebon now! She's safe! I promised to protect the spirits, and that's what i'm gonna do!"

"How sweet!" the madman started his turn, "But can you save yourself from the Wave of Ill-Intent?" the Professor slapped a spell onto his green-and-white disk, "Should you manage to destroy a monster of mine, then I'm afraid the Wave of Ill-Intent will crash into you for 300 points of damage! And now Ido attacks your Sunlight Unicorn!" by command, the shadow creature swiped a clawed hand at the unicorn, but the shining stallion retaliated and pierced its horn on the demon, destroying the creature.

**Luna: 1500**

**Professor: 3400**

"That attack doesn't matter," the Professor derided, "for sometimes you must be willing to make sacrifices to achieve victory! Now I activate my Wave of Ill-Intent!"

Luna cried out as she took the damage.

**Luna: 1200**

**Professor: 3400**

"That attack wasn't that bad," she kidded.

"Well, I'm afraid it's about to get a lot worse. Because you destroyed a monster of mine, I can use the effect of my prized Mental Pollution spell! The corrosive power of this spell is capable of destroying one spell or trap card on your field."

Luna's trap card shattered into pixels, "The Pixie Ring is gone! Sorry, Kuribon!"

"And now during the end-phase, my Ido resurects once again!" the shadow beast returned, "I end my turn."

"My move then," Luna started her turn, "I draw..."

"Since Kuribon's ATK points have changed, the suffer the effect of Immortal Homeostasis... You must endure 300 points of direct damage!"

The electrical damage surged through Luna.

**Luna: 900**

**Professor: 3400**

'It's like everything I try to do ends up hurting me...' Luna thought, 'But I can't give up!' "I place one card face-down. With that done, I activate healing wind from my hand! Which means, for every spell and trap card on the field including yours, I regain 200 life points!" a small shower of fairy dust sprinkled Luna.

**Luna: 1500**

**Professor: 3400**

"I end my turn!"

The Professor nickered as he started his turn, "Goodwin was a fool thinking I would share the power with him and the rest of his Ylliaster servants. I devoted my entire life to finding a way to connect to this world. Now that I am standing here, I intend to steal its power for myself! The spirit world will me mine! It will crumble before me!" the Professor's twisted personality was causing so much turmoil the shadow infected the land more rapidly, crumbling and destroying anything caught within it.

"Oh no!" Luna cried, "The spirit world is colapsing! I can't let it! I can't!"

"It's too late to save this world, or your Kuribon! IDO THE SUPREME MAGICAL RULER! ATTACK!" the demonic shadow lept up and prepare to pounce on the helpless little furball, to end her miserable life, to end this duel, and to end all hope in the spirit world...

But the young Spirit Caller wasn't about to have it! "Stop! I play Fairy Wind!" a reverse card flipped up, "With this trap, all face up spell and trap cards on the field are destroyed, dealing 400 point of both players for each one!" a strong wind picked up and blew away all of the Professor's cards. And the iron confines rusted away and freed Kuribon and returned her power.

**Luna: 300**

**Professor: 2200**

"Listen up, Professor! I'm not gonna let you do any more damage to the spirit world! Your evil and destructive ways will end, NOW!" the sudden confidence boost caused her hair braces to pop, letting her teal pigtails fall. Her duel disk began to shine as bright and blindly as her pure soul. When the light faded, it took on a new form: the pink wrist dealer was now gold light-blue, with an orange crystal gem in the center. The card-zone wings have now taken form of a pair of sparkling diamond fairy wings, slightly spread out from one another.

The bright, glowing aura surounding the Spirit Caller forced the mad professor to shield his eyes, "What kind of trickery is this?"

"I gave my word to protect this world, ant that means I'm gonna have to take out you precious life points, even if it means risking my own at the same time! And since your equip spell is gone now, Kuribon's ATK points return to 300! You won't win this duel!"

"And you will not stop me from achieving my destiny!" the Professor screamed angrily, "Attack now, Ido!"

"Kuribon's special ability activate!" the young Kuribon disappeared in a ray of light and flew right into Luna's playing hand, "When Kuribon is attack, she can return to my hand in order to avoid damage! You can't touch her! And even though you regain life points equal to the attacking monster's ATK power, at least I was able to keep Kuribon safe!"

**Luna: 300**

**Professor: 4400**

"I promised to protect her, I promised to protect the spirit world, and I'm going to keep that promise!"

"No, my power will break you and your little promise!" the madman screeched, "There's nothing you can do to save this world! I will destroy it, and I will rebuild it under my rule!" he cackled so loudly that all his madness and turmoil caused an earthquake to shake the entire land to its core. The spirit world is disintegrating now, and at an alarming rate. That was when things came to a head.

A loud rumble came from the crag, the granite confines weakening to partially release the dragon fossil from it.

"Fairy Dragon!" Luna cried, "Man, it seems like she's in a bad mood! ...No! what is she doing?"

It's stone hand reached out and grabbed the still-cackling professor, and brought him close to its raging roaring maw.

"You're going to crush him! Don't do it, or else you're no better than he is! Put him down, okay?" but Luna's pleas were muted off my the threatening roar of the dragon, 'Maybe if I can just end this duel...' "I activate Oberon's Prank!" her last reverse card flipped open, "This trap reverses Kuribon's effect! Instead of restoring our life points, it damage us for the same amount!" a strong tornado rapidly descended on the battlefield, and with strong enough gales, The Professor was released from the monster's grip. Not only that, Luna was also picked up by the wind, officially ending the duel.

**Luna: 0**

**Professor: 0**

_"The evil is gone! But now you must stop the person who sealed me away..."

* * *

_

His mind wracked with vertigo, the Professor felt his world spinning and fell on his back.

Luna's eyes went back to normal, finally returned to the real world, "Is he okay?" she looked up and saw the Professor, still lying unconscious, "He is; that's good, I guess..." Luna's stamina dropped from the duel and fainted, but not before Yusei caught her. She was then carried to the exit in his arms.

Only one word ran through Luna's tired head, 'Leo...'

* * *

Back at the clinic, Jason had finally woke up from his coma. He was welcomed by Gabriella, Ken, Rico, Nathan and Katherine, who pounced on him for a bone-crushing hug.

"Oh my gosh, Jason! You're finally back! I was so worried I though I was never going to see you again!"

"Ow, ow... Okay, Kat. I'll be okay. You can let go now," Jason was released from the Neko's deadly grip. But the hurt wasn't going away. It took him a moment to find out that it was coming from the glowing mark on his arm.

"That thing appeared when we came to check on you!" Ken said, "What the heck is that on you arm? Huh?"

"That's what I was hoping to find out, Ken," Jason's mark then disappeared.

"His mark! It's dissapeared!" Rico exclaimed.

"What did I miss while I was asleep?" Jason asked, changing the subject.

"Just Luna's second duel. Check it out," Nathan pointed to a wide-screen on the wall, where the M.C. made an announcement.

_"Our Losers' Bracket and neither competitor will be moving on!" _the M.C. grimaced, _"Both duelists have lost..."_

"Well then, you can't win 'em all."

Meanwhile at the arena, Luna, still tired from the match, had a little talk with her little spirit partner,_ "Don't worry, Kuribon; I won't leave you again. I'll always protect the spirit world..." _after that, the spirit disappeared into her Luna's pink duel disk. And surprisingly, Luna hopped out of Yusei's arms, "I can walk by myself you know."

"...Welcome back, Luna," Yusei smiled.

The entire audience hollered and cheered for Luna's performance. And for once, she wasn't shy about it.

* * *

**Elsewhere...**

In a dark and confined room, someone was sitting on his throne, spinning a card between his fingertip and the chair-arm. That card in particular...

...was the Ancient Fairy Dragon.

* * *

**?: Now let's see what's up ahead-**

**?: -on the next Yugioh 5D's!**

**?: Tommorow's the semi-finals-**

**?: -and everyone's very excited!**

**?: 8 duelists-**

**?: -only 4 will remain!"**

**?: Who's gonna advance-**

**?: Nobody knows!**

**?\?: Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator!**

**Please Review.**


	33. The Longest Afternoon: Part 1

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."

As we have learned from last time, Luna's Spirit Caller powers enabled her spirit to enter the Duel Monster's spirit world. But the price is, her twin brother's spirit is lost between the crossroad of there and the real world. As soon as Luna defeated the deranged professor frank, her own spirit returns, bringing Leo along with her. And after Leo woke up from his coma, he rushed back to the stands to check on his sister. And this is what he found out...

"You... WHAT?" he screamed, "How are we supposed to keep dueling now, Luna? IT'S NOT FAIR!"

"Well, just look who's talking," Luna argued, "At least I didn't lose my my match like you did."

"Well, yeah, but..."

'...I guess because Leo passed out, he doesn't remember that my duel was about a lot more than this tournament,' she thought as she thought back to when the Professor invaded the spirit world.

_**Flashback...**_

_"I have finally left my body behind..." his eyes snapped open to complete an evil and twisted face, "I HAVE ENTERED THE SPIRIT WORLD!"_

_"What do you want?" Luna protested._

_""You are much more important than you know my dear," he replied, "Now be a good girl; use your Signer power and reveal to me the secrets of this wonderful realm. Lend me your power."_

_**...End Flashback.**_

'And what power could the Professor be talking about? Could he have meant that mark on my arm?' Luna glanced at her right arm where the glowing mark was.

"What's wrong, Luna?" Yanagi asked, "Hurt your arm during the duel?"

"Yeah, you keep looking at it like you're expecting to see something," Dexter added.

"It's fine, I promise."

"If you say so," Yusei said, walking over to where the company is, "Now, I think its time to get you two home."

"Have fun babysitting them," Tanner teased.

"Alright!" Leo cheered, "We'll have an all-night dueling sleepover-"

"Ladies and gentlemen," the M.C. announced from the sphere, "The second round has been announced! Check out the competition bracket!" two screens appeared, each one with a different portion of the tournament:

**Yusei Fudo vs. Greiger-(Turbo)**

**Jason Hutchins vs. Xiki Nomura-(Turbo) (Wild Card)**

**Akiza Izinski vs. Commander Koda**

**David Carten vs. Divine (Wild Card)**

"Who knows what kind of excitement awaits! Who will win? Who will lose? 8 duelists, 4 round! Who will it be? Things are gonna get really crazy! See ya' tomorrow!" then the screen went blank, concluding today of the Fortune Cup preliminaries.

"Yusei versus Greiger? Oh no, not him!" Leo whined, "Greiger's super tough, he even beat me!"

"Looks like you'll be Turbo Dueling," Tanner told Yusei.

"It's that bad?"

"You bet, because rumors on the circuit said Greiger's got a new duel runner he's gonna be using. It's supposed to be unbeatable."

Hearing that, Leo got nervous, 'I can't let Greiger win...' he thought, 'Oh, if I can sneak into his garage before the match, I can see what he's got planned and tell Yusei!'

"Uh, are you okay?" Luna asked, spotting the expression on Leo's face.

"Huh? Oh! Yeah! Fine! I, uh, just left something! Somewhere else! Be right back!" Leo quickly went on his way out.

"Where are you going?"

"Oh! You know! The place with the, uh... Oh! Look at the time! gotta go!" he made his exit before any more questions can be made.

"Leo? ...This can't be good."

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 30: The Longest Afternoon**

**Part 1: Synthetic Counterattack

* * *

**

Even though Jason recovered from his coma, he hasn't fully recovered. So he decided to go to the one place he would get his energy back: the New Domino Youth Center.

"Here you are, kids! Now, who ordered the Stardust Sundae?"

"I did!" Bernie gave Katherine a bowl of vanilla/mint swirled ice cream, topped with white chocolate, with four vanilla wafers.

"And how about the Scorching Crimson Chili?"

"That's me!" Kenich was given a bowl of steming hot chilly with chunky red pepper toppings.

"And the Naturia Fruits-and-Veggies Salad?"

"Thank you, that's mine," Gabriella was given a salad with various fruits and vegetables.

"I guess that leaves the Hungry Burger-and-Fries to Jason," said person was served with a sesame-bunned half-pounder with a mess-load of fries on the side. With all the food served, Bernie went back to the bar.

"Alrighty, I think its time to talk about what you're gonna do tomorrow," Ken said.

"Whadaya mean?" Jason asked, stuffing a mouthful of fries in his mouth.

"I mean the semi-finals, Jason! We need to find out what you gotta do to fight Nomura at the semi-finals! We gotta find out what strategy to counter hers!"

"Well, I figured I'd just do what I've been doing and stick with my normal strategy. Y'know, just go with the flo-"

"Nah, that's how most amatuers lose most of their battles. We're gonna have a practice duel as soon as we're finished here! Got it?"

"...Uh, yeah!"

"Oh, Neko!" Gabriella was busy wiping Katherine's mouth of chocolate sauce with a napkin, "If you didn't have a spoon you would've told me instead of just stuffing yourself,"

"Oh, I'll get her one. C'mon, Kat," Jason took Katherine's hand to go to the bar, until...

"Jason, look out!" but Ken's warning cried on deaf ears as Jason ran smack into somebody. He looked back and saw the last person he wanted to right now. Xiki Nomura was standing right in front of him, with a whole mess of chili staining her shirt; and she doesn't look happy at all. What Jason also noticed were two other girls standing on either side of Nomura.

One has long raven-black hair tied up in two buns, each attached to a long pigtail. She wore a variety of gothic clothing. The other had golden-blond hair styled in giant curls. She wore and elegant pink ball-gown, twirling a frilly pink parasol in your arms.

"Oh man, i'm so sorry! I had know idea you were there! I'm really sorry!" Nomura tried to advance on the pleading Satellite, "No-no, just stay here! I'll get you some more chilli! I'll even pay for it, okay? I'll be right back!" before saying anything else, Jason tugged on Katherine and continued on his way.

"...If I was you, I'd kick his effin' ass!" the goth girl insisted to Nomura.

When he got to the bar, the first thing he did is ask Bernie for another spoon. When it came, he reached out the get it, but there was another hand touching his. Jason looked over and saw it belonged to a girl. She had dark skin, wears a simple blue shirt and jean shorts. What really caught his attention was her short and spiky blue hair and ocean-blue eyes.

"Oh, i'm sorry, I had no idea it was yours," the girl said timidly, "That was very rude of me."

"That alight," Jason took the spoon and gave it to Katherine, "Hey, do you live anywhere near here?"

"I just moved here a few days ago, but thanks for asking," she answered.

"So, did you hear about the Fortune Cup this morning?"

"The Fortune Cup? Oh, I was hoping to see it, but with all the settling in, I kinda missed it."

"Oh. Well it's kinda great to be talking to you. I have to go back to my friends," Jason took Katherine's hand again and left the bar. But before he can turn to see where he was going, he accidentally bumped into someone. It was once again Xiki Nomura.

"Now, that's strike two," and without warning, she grabbed Jason by the hair and shammed his head on the bar table.

The blond girl poked at him with her umbrella, "You look conscious to me, Satellite. Unless you have a serious sleepwalking problem, Lady Nomura can straighten it right out."

"Yeah! She'll break your legs and kick your effin' ass!" pigtails teased.

"Now, I could take your cards, and shove them down your throat, so far, that you'll be hurling Duel Monsters for a month!" Nomura threatened, "I've done it before, don't make me do it again!"

"Wait, hold on! I said I was sorry!" Jason argued, "Look, you're messing up my hair!"

"Oooh, 'you're messing up my hair'!" pigtails repeated mockingly.

Xiki roughly released him and stepped back, "Aw, what's the matter, Satellite, can't afford a barber or even a comb? Of course, it's understandable, being a Satellite," her two girls snickered at the insult, "Look, if you wanna make a living for the first time in you miserable life, you can come to me. I'm sure we can find you something to keep you occupied. Oh, how about garbage collecting? That is what you're ever good at anyway, right?" she turned and left with her two accomplices bursting out laughing. But just like karma, a small bowl ran smack into Nomura's back. When she turned back around, her face went redder than a tomato, "Did you just throw ice cream at me?"

"That was me!" the scene turned to a puffed and upset Katherine, "If you wanna say something bad about Jason, then you're gonna have to aswer to me-"

"So you think you're so sly, huh, Satellite?" Xiki ignored the little girl and stomped towards Jason, "Well if you're so tough with my back turned, the let's see what you got in a fair fight!" without warning, the Twilight Mistress took a handful of Jason's collar and lift him off his feet with uncanny strength!

"Yea, how you like that, Jay-Jay!" pigtails cheered, "Do it! Do it! Do it!"

"One... (POW)," Nomura slammed a hardened fist right onto Jason's face!

"Go! Go-go-go-go!"

"Two... (POW)!"

"Wait! Wait! Wait! ..., ..., ...Okay, now-now-now!"

"(POW)Strike three! You're out!" she the tossed the poor punching bag clear across the area, where he crashed onto a vacant table. Nomura and the girls went over to the battered Jason, "So what you gonna say now, Satellite!"

"...Your shoulin technique is pretty good," said a dizzy Jason.

"This guy thinks you're joking around with-WHOA!" pigtails was tossed aside before she could finish her sentence, and Bernie stepped in.

"Hey, I know you heard me a couple-hundred times before, but if you want to keep coming here, stop causing trouble. If you wanna resolve this, then how about a duel?"

"And I take it that you're up to the challenge, huh?"

"That would be me," Xiki and Bernie turned to a man 19 years of age, dark-blond hair, wearing a black jacket, grey pants and white t-shirt. What's peculiar was a tattoo on his left arm with the word 'light-judge', "As part-timer of the New Domino Youth Center, I feel it is my job to make sure that the people here are safe."

"...Fine then," Nomura snapped her fingers, "Hilary, it's time to come out to play now."

"Oh, goody-goody!" the pigtails named Hilary chirped, "Playtime! Yay!"

While everyone went outside for the match, Ken, Gabriella and Kat went over to Jason's aid, "Aw man! Are you all right, man? Hey, you knew we had your back, right?"

"Yeah, way back..." Jason muttered before passing out.

* * *

**Outside...**

The duel is about to go underway and everyone is excited.

"DUEL!"

**Ryan: 4000**

**Hilary: 4000**

"I go first! Hilary called, "And I activate the field-spell card called (5ds)Synthetic Citadel!" almost instantly after the card came into play, the entire scene changed from a cold asphalt area, to a giant glowing fort made entirely of glass. There even was three large gems of orange, purple and green embedded on the floor.

"And with this card on the field, all fairy-type monsters gain a 300 ATK/DEF boost! Also, any card sent to the graveyard will be removed from play instead! Next, I play the Soul Absorption spell! And then, I summon (1) Bountiful Artemis(1600/1700) from my hand!" the monster summoned appeared as a loose sculpture of ceramic glass, held together by several small green crystal orbs. Its bottom half was supported by a giant top-like waistline to keep it afloat. Bountiful Artemis sparkled with energy from Hilary's field spell (DEF: 2000)

"Then I place three cards face down! Your turn!" three reverse card appeared.

"I summon (6) Jain, Lightsworn Paladin(1800/1200) in ATK mode," a white-haired woman wearing white armor and cape, wielding a shield and glowing sword appeared on Ryan's field.

"Then I'll activate my face-downs Synthetic Seraphim and (5ds)Synthetic Blast traps!" a reverse card flipped up. The later showing a trio of Synthetic Seraphim tokens firing a barrage of glowing orbs.

"Moving on, during the battle-phase, Jain's special ability activates, giving her 300 more ATK points this turn!" the Paladin's sword glowed even brighter as she advanced toward the opposing monster.

Jain, Lightsworn Paladin: (ATK: 2100/1200)

"Attack now!"

"I don't think so!" Hilary sang as she pressed a button on her disk, "I play my third face-down, Negate Attack!" a barrier formed around her monster, protecting it from Jain's sword attack. That's when a chain of reactions began, "And since I played a counter-trap, the effects of a lot of my cards activate: first is my Synthetic Seraphim trap, which gives me one Synthetic Seraphim token(Lv: 1/100/100) on the field!" a blue-and-white ceramic monster, mounted on four ATV wheels and armed with four blasters on its shoulders, appeared (DEF: 400), "Next is my Synthetic Blast, which deals 100 points of damage for each level of monsters on my field!" with Bountiful Artemis at LV4 and the token at LV1, Synthetic Seraphim fired off 500 points worth of damage to Ryan.

**Ryan: 3500**

**Hilary: 4000**

"And thanks to my field spell, I can pick one of my fairies on my field and duplicate its effect! And with my Bountiful Artemis in play, I get to draw 1 card from my deck!" Hilary drew two cards, one from the Artemis, and the other from Synthetic Citadel, "And finally, I can place the counter-trap back into the bottom of my deck, thanks to Synthetic Citadel!"

* * *

Ken: "So she summon a monster to her field, dealt damage to her opponent, drew 2 cards, and added one to her deck, just because she played that one little counter-trap card? Man, that girl must be tough."

Xiki: 'Oh, you haven't even begun to see her abilities.'

* * *

"I'll just end my turn with a face-down, but not before Jain's special ability activates," Ryan discarded three cards from the top of his deck. Unfortunately, due to the field spell, they were instantly removed from play.

"That activates my Soul Absorption, giving me 500 life points for each card removed from play!" a white aura surrounded Hilary.

**Ryan: 3500 (31)**

**Hilary: 5500**

"And now it's my turn!" she drew, "I summon (2) Banisher of the Radiance(1600/0) in ATK mode!" a ceramic arms-and-torso held together by orange orbs appeared, with red wings, and a glowing crystallized orb in its chest (ATK: 1900), "Then I switch my Artemis to ATK mode and attack!" (ATK: 1900) the monster gathered a ball of green light and fired it at the paladin.

"I activate my Lightsworn Barrier trap card!" Ryan's reverse card opened, "By sending 2 cards from my deck to the graveyard, Lightsworn Barrier can negate your monster's attack," a crystalline barrier appeared around the paladin as it protected her from the attack.

"That also gives me 1000 more life points from my Soul Absorption spell!"

**Ryan: 3500 (29)**

**Hilary: 6500**

"So I'll try again! Banisher, attack!" the other monster fired a beam of light from its chest, but Ryan activated his barrier once again and shielded from its attack. The Soul Absorption activated again.

**Ryan: 3500 (27)**

**Hilary: 7500**

"I'll place a card face-down and end my turn!"

Ryan started his turn, "I attack with Jain, Lightsworn Paladin!" the swords-woman advanced and activated her special ability, but that was a big mistake.

"I activate the counter-trap, Divine Wrath! By discarding one card from my hand, I can negate a monster's effect and destroy it!" after Hilary met the requirements, a giant bolt of lightning descended and obliterated, "And that gives me even more life points!"

**Ryan: 3500 (20)**

**Hilary: 8500**

"And the whole thing starts all over again: first I get another token!" another Synthetic Seraphim appeared (DEF: 400), "Then you take damage from Synthetic Blast, only this time you get 900 points of damage!" the two tokens fired at Ryan.

**Ryan: 2600 (20)**

**Hilary: 8500**

"And then I draw 2 cards!" Hilary drew twice, "And finally, the trap I used is returned to the bottom of my deck!" her counter-trap was sent into her deck.

"Then I guess I'll set a monster in DEF mode and end my turn with a couple of face-downs," three reverse cards appeared.

"Here I go!" Hilary started her turn, "I summon (3)Meltiel, Sage of the Sky(1600/1200) to the field in ATK mode!" a red-armored synthetic angel appeared, held together by green orbs. It was surrounded by a glowing yellow ring, that was wrapped loosely in red ribbon, and it has a skirt of crystalline feathers (ATK: 1900), "Now I'll use it to attack your face-down!" Meltiel charged up and fired a beam of rings at Ryan's set monster. When the card was destroyed, it was revealed to be a wolf pup.

"You just triggered the effect of my (7) Ryko, Lightsworn Hunter(200/100)," Ryan explained, "When flipped over, I can remove 2 cards from my deck, and then destroy 1 card on your field," after Ryan discarded the top two cards to his graveyard slot-

**Ryan: 2600 (18)**

**Hilary: 8500**

"Hey! You can't do that!" Hilary complained, "My field spell won't let you do that!"

"Oh? I guess I didn't tell you about my Imperial Iron Wall," his reverse card flipped, "I activated it the moment you sent your monster to attack Ryko. As long as I have this in play, no other cards can be removed from play! Now I use Ryko's effect and destroy you field spell!" Ryko's spirit appeared from out of Ryan's disk ready to tear down the citadel...

"My field spell's not going anywhere! I activate another one of Synthetic Citadel's effects! Depending on what type of card I discard from my hand, I can negate the effect of that card if it dared to touch my citadel! So by sending Herald of Orange Light to the graveyard, I can negate your puppy's effect! You have to try a lot better than that!" after sending a card to her grave, the spirit was repelled and returned to Ryan's grave, "And now's a perfect time for my Artemis to attack!" the monster fired another ball of light at Ryan, until...

"I activate my Glorious Illusion's trap!" Ryan's reverse card opened, "With this, I can summon a Lightsworn from my graveyard. So I think I'll be summoning (8) Gragonith, Lightsworn Dragon(2000/1600)!" in a flash of light, a giant dragon appeared, with its golden mane, flowing golden tail, majestic armor, and giant angelic wings. That move he made caused Hilary to replay.

"I'm gonna switch my Banisher to DEF mode!" Hilary yelled as the monster gained a blue aura (DEF: 300), ending her turn.

"It's my turn, then," Ryan drew, "I play the Spellbook Inside the Pot!" Ryan's hand became six and Hilary's became three, "Next, I place two cards face-down and activate the Card Destruction spell, which discards all the cards in out hand and redraw!" both players discarded and redrew, "And here's when it gets interesting: Gragonith's ATK power increases by 300 for each different Lightsworn in my graveyard. And since I have 4 already, my dragon gets 1200 ATK points!"

Gragonith, Lightsworn Dragon: (ATK: 3200)

"Next, I summon my (9) Lyla, Lightsworn Sorceress(1700/200)!" a black-haired woman in white golden-rimmed robes, wielding a golden wand, appeared (ATK: 1700), "And now my Gragonith attacks your Synthetic Seraphim token!" a flashing mass of light gathered in the dragon's mouth, "And when it attack a monster in DEF mode, you still take battle damage!" it unleashed a large beam of energy, obliterating one of the tokens.

"Sorry! But if my fairies get attacked in either position, my field spell protects me from all battle damage!"

"Then I guess I'll activate Lyla's special ability, then," Ryan switched the monster's card position, and it gained a blue aura (DEF: 200), "Once a turn, I can switch Lyla's battle position to destroy a spell or trap card you have on the field!" the sorceress aimed her wand and fired at the field spell.

"Don't you learn? I can still send a card to the graveyard to negate and destroy your monster!" after Hilary discarded Herald of Purple Light, Lyla's effect backfired and she was destroyed.

"Okay the, I'll activate the Mystical Space Typhoon, and try again!" after Ryan played the spell, a strong wind picked up.

"I activate (4) Herald of Green Light(300/500)'s special ability from my hand! By discarding that and another fairy, I can negate your spell's effect!" after meeting the requirements, a flash of green light calmed the storm.

"I place two cards face-down and end my turn," two reverse cards appeared and his turn was over, but not before activating his Lightsworns' effects, discarding a total of 6 cards from his deck.

**Ryan: 2600 (11)**

**Hilary: 8500**

"And with three more Lightsworns in my grave, Gragonith's ATK becomes 900 points stronger!"

Gragonith, Lightsworn Dragon (ATK: 4100)

* * *

Ken: "Shoot, it's like no matter what card you play, that Hilary girl has a counter for it!"

Jason: "What he has to do is get rid of that field spell, and quick than usual this time!"

* * *

"It's my turn now!" Hilary drew, "First I play the spell Pot of Greed!" she synthetic duelist drew twice, "Then I'll set a card face-down, switch Meltiel, Banisher, Artemis and Seraphim to ATK mode (ATK: 1900/1900/1900/400), and attack!" the synthetic angels fired off another round at the sorceress.

"I activate the effect of my Lightsworn Barrier! Now I remove 6 cards from my deck, 2 for each attack!" the barrier formed around Lyla, defending her from all of Hilary's light blasts, except Seraphim's, which broken the shield to get to the sorceress.

**Ryan: 2600 (5)**

**Hilary: 8500**

"And that should end my turn!" Hilary said.

"Than it's my move," Ryan drew, "You played a good game so far, but now it's time for me to end it. So I activate my face-down, the trap Dust Tornado! And with no cards in your hand, there's nothing stopping _this_ storm from blowing away your citadel!" when his reverse card flipped up, another strong wind lifted up, threatening to accomplish what the Heavy Storm had failed.

"I activate my Solemn Judgement trap!" Hilary's reverse card flipped, "With this counter-trap, I can pay half my life points to negate a card's effect and destroy it!"

**Ryan: 2600 (4)**

**Hilary: 4250**

Ryan's trap was short-circuited and shattered to pixels, thus subsiding another storm. Not long after, the chain began yet again: Hilary was given another token (DEF: 100), her Synthetic Blast trap blasted him for another dose of damage, only this time it was 1300 points of damage...

**Ryan: 1300 (4)**

**Hilary: 4250**

...and next came Synthetic Citadel's duplication ability activated, "But this time I'm using it on my Sage of the Sky, doubling its effect and giving me 2000 life points, as well as the ability to destroy a total of two cards on your field!" a flurry of transparent feathers floated down on Hilary.

**Ryan: 1300 (4)**

**Hilary: 6250**

"But you can't! You need Sanctuary in the Sky to use Meltiel's destruction effect!" Ryan protested.

"I know! Because my field spell's name is treated _as_ Sanctuary in the Sky!" Hilary laughed, "So say bye-bye to your Lightsworn Dragon,,," the dragon exploded in a blinding light, "and your iron wall trap!" Ryan's trap shattered. Afterwards, Hilary placed her trap back into her deck.

"And that's nothing! Next I sacrifice all the monsters on my field!" light flashed over Hilary's synthetic angels and they disappeared.

"Oh man, there's only one monster that can do that!" Ryan realized.

"That's right! By releasing all of my Synthetic Angels, I can now summon your judge-and-jury! I summon the lord of all Synthetic Angels: (5) Voltanis the Adjudicator(2800/1400)!" in a blinding flash of light, a new Synthetic Angel appeared. Held together by crystal blue orbs, it had a violet glass hide and giant purple glass wings. It had a high collar around its single-eye helmet. Glowing crystals erected on its lower half of his body, "Here's where it gets fun: whenever Voltanis is summoned this way, I can destroy cards on your field equal to the number of monsters used to summon it! Say goodbye to your last trap card!" Voltanis raised its scepter and fired at Ryan's last reverse card.

"Before it's too late, I reveal my face-down D.D. Dynamite, inflicting 300 points of damage for every card removed from play!" after a bundle of dynamite sticks appeared in the middle of the field, it exploded moments later.

**Ryan: 1300 (4)**

**Hilary: 4550**

But as soon as it was removed from play, Hilary got another 500 points from the effect of Soul Absorption.

**Ryan: 1300 (4)**

**Hilary: 5050**

"Ha! What good would that do?" Hilary mocked.

"Just to give me enough leeway to bust out my most power monster. Say hello to my (10) Judgement Dragon(3000/2600)!" from a glowing portal, a humongous dragon appeared. It stood on all fours, with its crimson claws digging at the glass floor, giant wings spread out, and snow-white feathery scaled covered head-to-toe, "See, I can only summon him if there's 4 or more Lightsworns in my grave. And by paying 1000 life points, it can destroy all other cards on the field!"

"What? But you can't!" the dragon roared as it gave out countless shockwaves across the dueling field. The citadel structure began to crack, as did Voltanis. Soon, the field became nothing but a barren of broken debris of ceramic, "So what? Even if you attack me I'll still have life points left!"

"That's why i'm equipping him with Megamorph!"

Hilary gasped as Judgement Dragon grew twice its size. It roared again to show off its new-found power.

Judgement Dragon (ATK: 6000)

"What? But that's not fair!" Hilary screamed as she tugged on her pigtails, "It's not fair!"

"Who said life's fair?" Ryan cracked, "Judgement Dragon, go one and end this! Go, Light of Revelation!" the dragon fired off a huge beam of light energy, which hit Hilary dead on. She wailed as she took the full brunt of the attack.

**Ryan: 1300 (4)**

**Hilary: 0**

The center's audience cheered for Ryan's victory.

"That's game over, Nomura!" Ryan said, "Now get your cronies and out of our bar!"

"Oh, that? I guess I didn't bother to mention that I meant to bring out both of my girls, buth her and Terry."

"Say what?" Ken exclaimed.

"You must be kidding!" Jason complained.

"Well, tough luck! Listen up, all there's need to be done now to to finish one more duel and we'll be on our way; and none of those .losers from the Fortune Cup."

"But where are gonna find another duelist?" Gabriella wondered.

"I know just the person," Ryan said, "Hey Tyler, how about you come out of hiding and show these girls what you're made of!" he called towards the crowd, one who stepped forward was the same age as he is. His face was covered by a black hood on his jacket.

"Terry, take care of this one for me," Nomura called. The curly blond closed her parasol and entered the dueling field in place of Hilary, with her duel disk in hand, "And you had better not mess up."

"Oh, you won't have to worry about that," Terry activated her disk into duel mode.

Tyler did the same. And when he removed his hood, his face revealed an emo expression, with spiky black hair with a red stripe on it, "Let's get this over with. I got a lunch break in 4 minutes."

"Do you, then I guess I'll take my sueet time destroying you."

"Let's duel!"

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Bountiful Artemis**

**Stats: [Fairy/Effect] LV4 ATK/1600 DEF/ 1700**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: Draw 1 card from your Deck each time a Counter Trap Card is activated.**

**(2) Banisher of the Radiance**

**Stats: [Fairy/Effect] LV3 ATK/ 1600 DEF/0**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: Any card sent to the to the Graveyard is removed from play instead.**

**(3) Meltiel, Sage of the Sky**

**Stats: [Fairy/Effect] LV4 ATK/1600 DEF/1200**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: Each time a Counter Trap Card is activated, gain 1000 Life Points, and if "The Sanctuary in the Sky" is on the field, destroy 1 card your opponent controls.**

**(4) Herald fo Green Light**

**Stats: [Fairy/Effect] LV2 ATK/ 300 DEF/500**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: Send this card and 1 other Fairy-Type monster from your hand to the Graveyard to negate the activation of an opponent's Spell Card and destroy it. This effect can be activated during either player's turn.**

**(5) Voltanis the Adjudicator**

**Stats: [Fairy/Effect] LV8 ATK/ 2800 DEF/1400**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: After 1 of your Counter Trap Cards has been activated and has resolved, you can Tribute all monsters you control to Special Summon this card. If this card is Special Summoned in this way, you can destroy cards your opponent controls up to the number of Fairy-Type monsters you Tributed.**

**(6) Jain, Lightsworn Paladin**

**Stats: [Warrior/Effect] LV4 ATK/1800 DEF/ 1200**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: If this card attacks an opponent's monster, it gains 300 ATK during the Damage Step only. During each of your End Phases, send the top 2 cards of your Deck to the Graveyard.**

**(7) Ryko, Lightsworn Hunter**

**Stats: [Beast/Effect] LV2 ATK/ 200 DEF/100**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: FLIP: You can destroy 1 card on the field. Send the top 3 cards of your Deck to the Graveyard.**

**(8) Gragonith, Lightsworn Dragon**

**Stats: [Dragon/Effect] LV6 ATK/2000 DEF/1600**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: This card gains 300 ATK and DEF for each "Lightsworn" monster with a different name in your Graveyard. During battle between this attacking card and a Defense Position monster whose DEF is lower than the ATK of this card, inflict the difference as Battle Damage to your opponent. During each of your End Phases, send the top 3 cards of your Deck to the Graveyard.**

**(9) Lyla, Lightsworn Sorceress**

**Stats: [Sorceress/Effect] LV2 ATK/ 1700 DEF/200**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: You can change this card from face-up Attack Position to face-up Defense Position and destroy 1 Spell or Trap Card your opponent controls. If you activate this effect, this card's battle position cannot be changed until the end of your next turn, except with a card effect. During each of your End Phases, send the top 3 cards of your Deck to the Graveyard.**

**(10) Judgement Dragon**

**Stats: [Dragon/Effect] LV8 ATK/ 3000 DEF/2600**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card cannot be Special Summoned except by having 4 or more "Lightsworn" monsters with different names in your Graveyard. You can pay 1000 Life Points to destroy all other cards on the field. During each of your End Phases, send the top 4 cards of your Deck to the Graveyard.**

******Ryan: Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh: 5D's: Tyler's finally gonna dust off that old deck of his. Can it be enough to handle Terry's fiends? Or will it be checkmate for him? Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator!**

******Please Review.**


	34. The Longest Afternoon: Part 2

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."

* * *

**Ernie: "Now let's get up to speed with YuGiOh 5D's!: After the preliminaries, Jason and the gang went over to the Youth Center for a bite to eat! But it all went bad when Xiki Nomura came along and caused trouble. With the help of Ryan's Lightsworns, his Judgement Dragon wiped out the happy-go-lucky gothic Hilary and her Synthetic Angels. But now it's up to Tyler to beat another duelist and seal the deal for Nomura to leave. What kind of cards does he have under his sleeve? Let's hop on, rev it up, and find out!"

* * *

**

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 31: The Longest Afternoon**

**Part 2: Pan-demonic Checkmate

* * *

**

"The second duel is about to go under way. It's Tyler vs. Terry.

"DUEL!"

**Tyler: 4000**

**Terry: 4000**

"The first move is mine," Terry drew her sixth card, "And with my first move, I'll discard Archfiend General from my hand to add one Pandemonium spell card from my hand," a card stuck out of Tery's deck and she plucked it out, putting it into her hand. "Next I'll alter the scenery a bit by playing the field spell, (5D's) Chessboard Apocalypse."

"Chessboard Apocalypse?" Ryan repeated, 'I don't like the sound of that. It must be some new card that came out. I wonder what she's gonna do with it?'

When the spell was played, a thick veil of darkness fogged the entire basketball court. When the fog thinned they were now in a disturbing fort with bone statues of horrid monsters and bone-laced walls. The skies were now dark with crimson lightning. And the floor was now checkered black-and-white, hence the name, "Next I summon the monster known as the (5) Terrorking Archfiend(2000/1500)," a giant purple flame appeared in one of the checkered spaces in front of Terry. When it died out, a terrifying-looking demon appeared. its skin-free muscle was partially protected by armor of bone. Its black cape flowed under its black wings. Its skull-encased face had a tumor on top to represent some sort of crown. And to top it off, it wielded a large, wicked-looking blade of bone in its clawed hand (ATK: 2000), "And thanks to this field spell, all Archfiends on my field gain a 300 point boost, for both ATK and DEF," a wicked dark aura surrounded the demon.

Terrorking Archfiend: (ATK: 2300/DEF: 1800)

"Next comes my Double Summon spell card; and I'll use it to summon (6) Vilepawn Archfiend(1200/200)," another Archfiend appeared. This one had a giant clawed bone shield for its left hand and a steel blade for its right (DEF: 500), "Finally, I place one card face-down, and end my turn," a single reverse card appeared in the space behind the king.

"It's about time," Ryan started his turn, "And I summon this little guy in ATK mode," a small red egg appeared on the field. Seconds later after its arrival, something cracked the shell from within and a small hole was made by the thing lurking inside. When the top part of the egg cracked into pieces, the thing inside was revealed as an adorable baby dragon, with black scales and red eyes. It chirped when it spotted Tyler behind it.

'A (1) Red-Eyes Black Chick...' Terry realized, "So you're planning to use that dragon's effect so it can grow up into an adult dragon to battle my Archfiends?"

"Maybe..."

"Well, it's only fair to warn you that attacking won't work."

"We'll see," The egg disappeared in a wall of fire and from that, a much larger dragon was born. Its pitch-black hide practically camouflaged it in the darkness. Its wings stretched out and its beady red eyes glared at the blond girl, "(2) Red-Eyes Black Dragon(2400/2000), attack Vilepawn with Inferno Fire Blast!" the dragon spat out a giant ball of dark-crimson flame and it exploded around the demonic pawn.

But when the smoke cleared, the Archfiend survived without a scratch, "Sorry, but with Chessboard Apocalypse on my field, Vilepawn gains a special ability," Terry smirked, "So he can't be destroyed in battle."

"I place two cards face-down. It's your move," two reverse cards appeared.

"Thank you," Terry started her turn...

"And don't forget: you have to pay life points during your standby-phase for each Archfiend on your field."

"Yeah, about that, I forgot to mention Chessboard's primary effect: I don't have to pay life points with their effects."

Tyler groaned, "Well, that sucked."

"To you, maybe; I summon the (7) Infernalqueen Archfiend(900/1500) in DEF mode," another Archfiend with a dark, violet cape shrouding her boned structure appeared (DEF: 1800), "And with her special ability, I can give another Archfiend monster on my field and addition 1000 ATK for the duration of this turn," a black fog seeped into Terrorking's body.

Terrorking Archfiend: (ATK: 3300)

"And thanks to my field spell, Infernalqueen Archfiend gains another effect: it gives all other Archfiend monsters on my field 200 extra ATK and DEF points," Terrorking was surrounded by a wicked, blood-red flame which boosted its power even further.

Terrorking Archfiend: (ATK: 3500)

Vilepawn Archfiend: (ATK: 1700)

"Terrorking, slay that dragon of his with Locust Saber Barrage!" the Terrorking slashed open a rip in space with its sword and a swarm of locusts flew out of it, heading straight for the dragon. It howled in pain as the insects covered every part of his body, tearing at him in a feeding frenzy, until there was nothing left but bone, which disintegrated into dust.

**Tyler: 2900**

**Terry: 4000**

"Thanks, I was counting on that. Cause now I can activate my two face-down cards," both of Tyler's reverse cards flipped open, "With my Red-Eyes Burn trap card in play, because you destroyed my Red-Eyes this turn, we both get hit with damage equal to the dragon's ATK points," a geyser of scarlet-red energy erupted under both player's feet.

"Even effect damage won't stop me and my Archfiends," Terry plainly said, without event winching from the direct attack.

**Tyler: 500**

**Terry: 1600**

"Maybe, but let's see if my Red-Eyes have anything to say about it; because with my Red-Eyes Spirit trap card, he comes back from the graveyard," the black dragon returned (ATK: 2400).

"My turn is over," she scoffed.

"And so begins mine," Tyler drew, "I activate the spell card Inferno Fire Blast, allowing Red-Eyes to blast you with 2400 points of damage! This duel is over!" the dragon flew up and fired another fireball from his mouth, hitting the blond dead-on.

**Tyler: 500**

**Terry: 0**

* * *

Katherine: "He won!"

Ken: "He practically check-mated on her life points!"

Jason: "Hey, uh... if the match is over, then why hasn't the solid vision turned off yet?"

* * *

"I'm wondering the exact same thing," Tyler said, having heard the Satellite's comment, "What exactly happened? Does you field spell have another special ability you forgot to tell me?"

"You're right, I did," Terry smirked, "When I summoned Terrorking Archfiend at the start of the duel, Chessboard Apocalypse gave it an extra-special ability. You see, even though to wiped out all of my life points, even though they're at 0, I can't lose this duel."

"And the only way to beat you is to capture the king, just like any ordinary chess game, am I right?"

"You're starting to catch on. You're right; in a game of chess, you have to capture the king or force him in a corner to defeat your opponent. It may look simple but here's the kicker: as long as my field-spell's still in play, Terrorking can't be destroyed by card effects."

Tyler grunted.

"So the only was you can touch me is through the king; and that means to destroy him in battle. But my Vilepawn willingly ready to take the hit for his majesty, that would be a bit difficult, especially when it can't be destroyed in battle. Besides, your dragon's strength is 100 points behind to be any real threat anyway.

"Not for long, though. I play the spell Polymerization, combining my Red-Eyes Black Dragon on the field, with the Meteor Dragon from my hand, in order to fusion-summon..." Red-Eyes was being witnessed as it merged with a purple dragon with a meteorite-shell. It was getting more muscular and started to change to the color purple. Then his skin cracked all over outlining with hot boiling lava, "The (3) Meteor Black Dragon(3500/2000)!" the fusion dragon roared loudly (ATK: 3500), "That'll do for now."

"It's my turn, then," Terry drew, "I activate Pot of Greed, giving me 2 more cards," the blond drew twice, "Next I summon the (8) Darkbishop Archfiend(300/1400) in DEF mode," another Archfiend, shrouded in a midnight-blue cape with a sceptor in hand, appeared (DEF: 1700), "Then I avtivate the Field Barrier spell, protecting Chessboard Apocalypse from being destroyed. I end my turn.

"Then it's my move," Tyler started his turn, "I activate the spell Card of Demise. I'm sure you remember this back in the days of Battle City, but in case you don't, I can draw five new cards with this spell's effect, as long as I discard my hand in five turns," Tyler drew five times, 'Good hand, Tyler.' "Next I play Lightning Vortex, destroying all your monsters at the cost of one card from my hand," after meeting the requirement, a volley of lightning bolts rained down on the fiends, 'If this works, then I can attack Terrorking with Meteor Black Dragon...' but when the smoke cleared, the Archfiends stood in place, 'Or not...'

"With Chessboard Apocalypse on the field, Darkbishop prevents my Archfiends from being destroyed by effects that don't specifically target a monster," Terry explained.

"Then it's a good thing I have Tribute to the Doomed," Tyler played the spell card. After discarding from his hand, dirty bandages start to appear from the cracks of the floor below the Vilepawn.

"I activate Darkbishop's special ability," six different colored balls appeared beside Terry, labeled 1-6, "Whenever an Archfiend is targeted by a card effect, I receive a gambling chance," one of the balls lit up and the flame then started its way through the others rapidly, "And when the flame lands on a 1, 3, of 6, that card is negated and destroyed," the flame slowed down until it came to stop on the number 3, which caused Terry to smirk a third time, "And we got a 3."

The bandages withered and crumbled into dust, "Then I guess i'll have to lay down a face-down for now," a reverse card appeared in front of Tyler.

"It's my turn," Terry drew, "I summon (9) Desrook Archfiend(1100/1800) in DEF mode," a large skull with six taloned, bony tentacles appeared (DEF: 2100), "Next, I use Infernalqueen's special ability to increase Terrorknig's power."

Terrorking Archfiend: (ATK: 3500)

"Terrorking, attack!" the demon king advanced with sword in hand.

"But that's senseless!" Tyler protested, "Both our monsters have the same ATK points! They'll be destroyed instantly! Unless..."

"Unless I activate Desrook's special ability," Terry finished, "Because of Chessboard Apocalypse, Desrook's special ability makes it so Terrorking can't be destroyed in battle," the king lept up and brought its sword down in one swipe, slaying the dragon, "And that ends my turn."

'Man, it's like with every move I make, this girl is always two steps ahead of me...'

"Just face it; no matter what move you make, I'll always be two steps ahead of you."

'Gah! See? I gotta find some way to clear this gruesome gameboard! Otherwise, it's definitely gonna be Checkmate for yours truly!' "It's my draw!" Tyler started his turn, "I play my face-down Call of the Haunted to bring back my Meteor Black Dragon!" the molten dragon returned (ATK: 3500), "Next I play Spellbook inside the Pot!" both players drew thrice, "Now I activate the Dragon's Gunfire spell card! When this card is played, a dragon on my field gets to chose one of the following: to either burn you with 800 points of damage, or destroy one monster with 800 or less DEF points! And since you don't have any life points to spare, I guess i'll have to do with destroying your Vilepawn Archfiend!" Meteor Black Dragon raised a burning claw over the dark pawn.

"I activate Darkbishop's special ability, a play another round of Russian-Roulette to negate you spell's effect," the wheel of orbs returned and the flame spun and stopped on the number 2.

"It looks like your plan has finally backfired," Tyler said.

"Not quite; I activate my face-down, the trap Dice Re-Roll," Terry's reverse card flipped up, "You see, the roulette is also treated a a dice roll. So with this trap card, I get another chance," the flame once again spun around, this time landing on the number 6. The dragon seized its attack, "Don't you get it? It doesn't matter what you do; my king is safe as long as it has its lowly subjects to serve him."

"I guess it's true... but who says I have to?" Tyler slowly plucked a card from his hand, "Not me, that's for sure. I play the De-Fusion spell card!" the dragon separated into the original Red-Eyes and Meteor Dragons (DEF: 2000/2000), "Then I activate A Wingbeat of Giant Dragon!" after the spell activated, the Red-Eyes flapped its wings and ascended, causing a major windstorm, "When Wingbeat of Giant Dragon is in played, a level-7 dragon travels back to my hand. In return, all spells and traps are destroyed!"

As soon as Red-Eyes teleport back to its master's hand, the wind accelerated and wiped away all spells and traps on the field, except one, "Unfortunately Chessboard Apocalypse isn't affected thanks to Field Barrier," Terry said.

"Then i'll end my turn for now."

"My Archfiend deck is unbeatable, as you can see," Terry started her turn, "I use Terrorking to slay your Meteor Dragon," the Archfiend sliced the meteorite-encased dragon, "And that end's my turn for now."

"And starts mine," Tyler drew his card, "I activate Card of Sanctity," both players' hands became six, "And next I play monster reborn, and bring back my Red-Eyes," the black dragon returned once again (ATK: 2400), "And now to take my dragon to the next level! By releasing Red-Eyes Black Dragon, I can special-summon (4) Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon(2400/2000)!" the dragon glowed and slowly changed form. When the light dimmed, a new dragon took place. Its hide gained a shiny black form. It looked like the original Red-Eyes Black Dragon, but this one had golden stripes along its body and head, as well as six strange wings on its back (ATK: 2400), "And chect this out: Darkness Dragon also gains more ATK points; 300 for each dragon in my grave!" four silhouettes of dragons appeared around the black dragon as it gained more power.

Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon (ATK: 3600)

"What an amusing display you put there," Terry mused, "But it's all for nothing. No matter if your dragon's ATK is 3600 or 36000; you can't penetrate my defenses."

"Then I guess I should clear out the board, huh? I activate the spell card known as (5D's)Inferno Dark Fire!" a card depicts the Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon unleashing its signature attack, "When Darkness Dragon is on my field, the effect of this spell allows it to destroy all monsters on your field, and deal 300 points of damage for each one!"

The dragon fired off a barrage of black fireballs and obliterated the Archfiends, all except the Terrorking. That was when Terry finally began to worry, "This does not bode well..."

"No it doesn't; Red-Eyes, capture Terrorking Archfiend and put an end to this game!" Red-Eyes unleashed one final flare at the king , and finally, the Terrorking was dethroned.

**Tyler: 500 (Winner)**

**Terry: 0**

"And that's Checkmate!"

All the kids cheered at Tyler's victory. Nomura, however, was none too happy, So she stomped over to Terry and grabbed her by the collar and lift her up hard, "We're gonna have a talk when we get back," she whispered in a low growl. With that, she dragged her out of the premises, with Hilary being pulled along by her pigtails.

Ryan walked over to Tyler, "That was an awesome duel you did back there, man," Tyler just shrugged.

"Shoot, I never thought I'd see a Red-Eyes Black Dragon up close before," Ken awed.

"Hey, thanks for helping us out," Jason thanked Ryan.

"No problem. We were just happy to help; isn't that right, Tyler?" Tyler just looked back, "See, he agrees," then, the two walked away.

"What are we gonna do now," Gabriella asked.

"Go back in, I guess," Jason said. The company started to walk back inside until someone stopped them.

"Hey, I almost forgot; some guy in a suit told me to give you this. He said it's from Goodwin," Bernie took out an envelope and gave it to Jason.

When Jason opened the envelope, and read the letter inside, a stern look crossed his face. The others moved closer to see what was happening and read the letter as well.

"Guys, we might have to bring take-out," Jason said, "We might have to go back to the Tops..."

**

* * *

**

**Later...**

In the dark, sunset-lit confines of the Satellite, a boat was docking at the grim concrete port made for unloading supplies for the slum town.

"Alright, I don't know why you want to sneak back into this trash town, but we're here!" the captain growled, "Hope you had a pleasant trip. Now get your things and get off my boat! Enjoy the Satellite."

The captain then turned to another person, passing him a clipboard.

"This manifest shows that you had four passengers on board," the man said, "So everyone all paid up?"

The captain nodded, "Hey, now get moving before you get picked up by Sector Security!" the passengers exited around the pier.

"Step right up to the fastest ride to the Satellite Markets, the place to get recycled electronics around!" someone stood near a van shouting, "They got ecryptors, decryptors, re-cryptors; all makes, all models!"

"Room for two more," the driver turned to see Blister and Persian approached.

"Hey, Blister! It's been was too long, buddy! Aren't you placed in the city, now? What brings you back here?"

"A favor for a friend," Blister said, getting in the back seat along with Persian.

"I thought you'd given up friends?"

"So did I," Blister murmured as the van drove away…

* * *

The scene changes to the office of Director Rex Goodwin.

"These cards should help you in your duels tomorrow," Lazar handed out three Duel Monster cards. He snickered as three people each recieved one of them: Greiger, and two other dark-cloaked figures.

"This is perfect," Greiger replied as he placed the card into his deck box.

"Don't forget, Greiger; we need you to bring out Yusei's mark."

"Greiger knows what the stakes are," Goodwin said, "He is a faithful servant of Yliaster, and will determine if Yusei's truly is a Signer once and for all, correct?"

"Yes, I swear it, sir," Greiger bowed his head in allegiance, "And once i'm finished, can I rely on your word?"

"Of course. Your village, right? Tragic; I wish there was something there could be done to stop the devastation. How's your family? Have you heard anything from them?"

"Nothing yet. I hope that they are okay."

"I'm sure that they are."

"Yes, and I'm sure they're in dire need of the food and supplies you promised Miss Kaiba to deliver once I get Yusei's mark to appear. Now I must go and prepare for my duel," with that, Greiger walked out.

"As for you two, I take it you're willing to test Jason as well?" Goodwin asked the two cloaks.

"Don't worry, Mr. Goodwin," a male voice started.

"-We know just what to do," a female voice finished.

"If what you say is true, and he truly-"

"-is that missing Subject D-5 Epsilon,"

"Then we will give it our all and-"

"-bring out his mark as well."

"I'm glad to here it. Now you, as well, should practice as well," Goodwin said, "The more prepared you are, the better chance you have at testing Espilon's power.

?/?: "As you wish, sir." the two bowed.

* * *

As Greiger walked down the corridor, he stopped in his tracks. Someone was walking up to him, blocking the passage ahead.

"Nice outfit," the false king known as Jack Atlas commented mockingly.

"I don't have time to trash talk with you," Greiger retorted, "Now what do you want?"

"Just this: I don't like you, Greiger, and I never have. And don't even think about beating Yusei. He's all mine. But then again, I shouldn't worry too much. You were barely able to beat that pig-tailed pipsqueak from before."

"And you couldn't beat some street-punk from the Satellite," suddenly, a solid fist sped straight towards Greiger, who effortlessly caught it in his palm. They stood in those poses for awhile, "Now there's your problem right here, Jack; you always let your pride get the better of you."

"So what? You can't be king without a king's pride," Jack then retracted his hand, "You should've found yourself a better job here; like Janitorial Management."

"Listen up, Jack; my job is to put Yusei through the wringer. So in the meantime, why don't you stay out of my way," Greiger concluded the conversation and walked past Jack.

'You had better not interfere with my destiny, Greiger...'

* * *

**Later...**

Later that night, our favorite hyperactive green-haired boy entering the Kaiba-Dome's garage area.

"Greiger's garage! Time to check out that super-secret runner of his."

Leo noticed an open window around the building of Greiger's garage. Even when it took about five crates to climb up, he managed to reach the window, "Almost there; just a few more inches and I'm in..." he really did get in, but only by plummeting on the floor after slipping through.

"Next time i'm packing a parachute," Leo regained his posture and switched on a small pocket-flashlight, only to be welcomed by a giant monster! He went screaming like a little girl and quickly backed up to a corner, which he then heard the monster roaring a wailing screech!

"THIS ISN'T HAPPENING! IF I CAN'T SEE THEM THEY CAN'T SEE ME!"

* * *

"Leo's never late for dinner," in the Tops building, Yusei and Luna say around the sofa, with a table of silver platters in front of them, "I mean, he loves food a much as loves dueling, maybe even more," Luna looked over at the clock on the wall, "And he knows 8 P.M.'s his curfew."

"I'll go out and find him," Yusei stood up, "I have a feeling he's in trouble."

"I can help," Luna followed.

"You should stay here; it's late."

"Please? He's my brother! What if he's hurt? And we can cover twice the ground in half the time!"

"You got a point; but stay safe out there, okay?"

* * *

'Someone must've tripped the alarm to my garage,' clutching to a large monkey-wrench, Greiger walked up to where his garage is. When he lift up the door, he found the last thing he expected to see. Leo was lying on the floor in a fetal position, fast asleep.

"...What are you doing here?"

* * *

Back in the Sattelite, the van made its final stop to the markets.

"Just promise you'll be careful, Blister," the driver warned, "Goodwin's security goons are lurking everywhere!"

"Don't you worry about me. I'll be fine," Blister slipped on his hat and led Persian out of the car.

Soon, the duo were searching for Yusei's hideout via a palm-pilot, "Alright, the coordinates Yusei gave us should lead us right to his friends."

"Let's just hope Goodwin hasn't gotten to them already," Persian added. A blip appeared, telling them they were here. Persian flipped on a flashlight as she and Blister venture down the stairs, "The old subway tunnel... it's a wonder anyone would ever use it now."

"I like it," Blister said, "It reminds me of my place back in the city; just a bit cleaner," entering the station, the duo began their search.

"Hello, anyone down here?"

"Don't be alarmed! We're friend's of Jason and Yusei!"

"They sent us here to check out on you guys!"

They search the hut nearby and what they saw surprised them: the entire place was scattered all over the place. Electronics and furniture were everywhere.

"This place has been ransacked!" Blister exclaimed.

"This isn't good," Persian grimaced, "Where could they be?"

* * *

Yusei skidded his runner to a stop beside an alleyway as Luna ran up to him, "So did you find Leo?"

Luna shook her head, "No. I'm scared."

"Don't worry, Luna; your brother's out there and we'll find him," suddenly, there was a chiming sound from his duel runner as a video screen appeared on the display, showing a familiar face: "Blister!"

_"Yusei, me and Persian went to your bunker, but the place is totally trashed!"_

"Trashed? But they're okay, right?"

Blister shook is head, _"They're missing; and I can't find a trace."_

"What happened? Did Goodwin take them in?"

_"No idea. And here's where the trail goes cold: after I hacked into Security, I couldn't find a trace of them. It's like they just vanished. And if Goodwin's got a hold of them, they could be anywhere by now- Ugh! They're tracking my signal! I gotta sign off quick! I'll be back if I find anything." _

"Thanks," with that, Yusei clicked off the screen, his stern face spotted by Luna.

"I'm sorry. Are your friends missing, too?"

"Yeah." 'And I blame myself...'

Suddenly, Luna a sharp CLANG as a can crashed onto the road, "Yusei! Someone's in the alley!" she and Yusei turned to see Greiger stepping out of the shadows, with a little boy over his shoulder, "He's got Leo!"

'And he doesn't look too happy about it,' Yusei distorted, "Greiger, what are you doing with Leo?"

"Relax. He's alright, Yusei," the South American assured, "He broke into my garage. I found him sleeping on the floor."

* * *

**Later...**

Back at the Tops, Greiger looked over a still-sleeping Leo, snoring like a grizzly bear. He stepped from his room and found Yusei, tucking Luna in on the couch, "The boy's sound asleep."

"Sure can snore, can he?"

"Yep." Greiger smiled.

They exited the room and walked out onto a poolside patio.

"Thanks for bringing Leo back. I owe you one."

"Forget it," Greiger replied, "He was just trying to help you out."

"Help me out?"

"He wanted a sneak-peek at my new duel runner like everyone else out there. In fact, I had to install five new alarm systems just to keep it under wraps."

"...You gonna call Security?"

"No. He reminds me of my own little brother. I'm not gonna punish him just because he's trying to help you win our duel tomorrow. It won't make a difference; You're still going down. I may be a good guy off the track, but trust me when I say that you don't wanna mess with me when I'm turbo-dueling. After all, these are the big leagues, Yusei. And there's quite a lot riding on this tournament for me and my future."

"What? Like a big trophy?"

"Big trophy? No, the future I'm talking about is for my family," Greiger walked away slightly, "They're far away, waiting, hoping I'll give them some help. We used to count the stars together..." he looked up in the heavens, "Here, there's only smog. And you; why are you dueling here?"

"...My friends. I don't have a choice about it."

"Let me guess: Goodwin made you an offer you couldn't refuse. Sound right?"

"How'd you know? He came to you, too?"

Greiger nodded, "He offered me a chance to rebuild my family's village. My people believe that our forefathers were servants to the People of the Stars, and our village has a deep and hidden power."

"Hidden power? Are you talking about the legend of the Crimson Dragon?"

"That's right. Legend has it that whoever controls the dragon also gets to control the destiny of the world. I hadn't been back to my village in years. But after I complete my mission here, I'll head back to rebuild my home."

"...You can't trust Goodwin's word, Greiger."

"Easy for you to say. I need that power to help rebuild my village. I heard it was consumed by fire and destruction unlike any natural disaster the world has ever seen. Then Director Goodwin came to me. He said he'd help, but not until I help you continue with his quest."

"Greiger, don't you see you're being used?"

"If it's the only way to rebuild my village, then then I'll let him use me all he wants, Yusei. Sorry, but tomorrow, I had to win no matter what."

"And my friends need me."

"Then I guess we'll leave it at that. May the best man win," Greiger began to walk back inside, but stopped when he crossed Yusei, "You're a great guy, Yusei. And in a perfect world, we both get what we want in the arena tomorrow. But the world isn't perfect. One of us has to lose. and tomorrow, it's gonna be you," with that, he left.

**

* * *

**

**The next morning...**

The bright sunlight shone at the ever-packed Kaiba-Dome. Today is the day of the semi-finals.

"Welcome back to the semi-finals of the Fortune Cup! Eight duelists remain, and the winner will take on Jack Atlas in the championship duel!" the MC announced, "But first we have a special announcement to make! We all know who she is! She's the Ariel Artist! The Songbird Siren! Ladies and gentlemen, Sonya Harpe!"

And just as certain, the Harpie duelist rose onto the arena, wearing a sparkling emerald ballgown, "Good morning, New Domino City! For the remainder of the tournament, I'll be refereeing the Fortune Cup Wild Card," the crowds roared with excitement, "That's right! But first a special treat for you today! Today we start with a little exhibition match: a tag-team duel! First off, we select one of the semi-finalists who will be our first contestant..." the sphere flashed one image of the duelists after another at amazing speeds, until it stopped at one person, "And here he is! Jason Hutchins, come on down!"

When Jason arived at the arena, the boos he recieved were mixed with a few cheers, "how you doing Jason? Now here's how this is gonna work: all you have to do is pick one of the contestants to be your tag partner!" the images of the semi-finalists once again appeared, "All you need to do is pick!"

"I... I, um..." 'I don't think I'm really supposed to...'

_**Flashback...**_

_The day before, Jason, Gabriella and Katherine went straight back to their apartment to talk about what Jason found in the letter he got earlier._

_"So what's so important about an exhibition match that Goodwin has to tell you?" Gabriella asked._

_"It's a tag-team match, Gabe," Jason replied, "And all I need is to partner up with one of the semi-finalists to stay in the Fortune Cup."_

_"Ooh! I'll duel with you, Jason! Let me be your partner!" Katherine waved estatically._

_"I would, but the problem is, I can't pick anyone who lost at the Fortune Cup."_

_"Maybe if you ask Yusei..." Gabriella insisted._

_"I can't pick anyone who advanced either..."_

_"But if you can't select any of the contestants, then how are going to find a partner?"_

_"I don't know... But maybe if..."_

_**End Flashback.**_

"Um, can I make a different partner, like someone in the audience?"

"Oh? Well, I don't know if you can, but then again, no one said you can't-"

"Then I call Gabriella Cheshire from the stands!"

When she heard Jason call out her name, that was her cue to got out to the arena. A few moments later, Gabriella arrived right beside Jason, with duel disk in hand, "Alright, now let's get this duel underway!" Sonya announced. Both partners activated their disks to duel mode.

'It's a good thing Goodwin has let me use me Genex cards just for this duel,' Jason thought.

"And now, for their opponents! The Great Geminis, the Twins of Terror," smoke of red and blue exploded and revealed two cloaked figures facing Jason and Gabriella, "Give it up for the Masters of Fire and Ice, the twins Taylor and Tyler!" the duelist removed their cloaks to reveal a pair of teenagers about sixteen years of age. One is a boy with dark skin, fiery-red eyes and spiky red hair, wearing a red tank top under an open red shirt with blue rims. He wears red shorts and red other one was a girl who looks exactly like the person next to her, except her eyes were ocean-blue, her hair and attire color were opposite as well, being blue instead of red.

."We are very excited to meet you-," The one in red started.

"-Subject: D-5 Epsilon," the blue finished.

"My name is Tyler-"

"And I'm his sister Taylor!"

Taylor/Tyler: "Get ready to duel!"

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Red-Eyes Black Chick**

**Stats: [Dragon/Effect] LV1 ATK/800 DEF/ 500**

**Attribute: DARK**

**Effect: By sending this face-up card from the field to the Graveyard, Special Summon 1 "Red-Eyes B. Dragon" from your hand.**

**(2) Red-Eyes Black Dragon**

**Stats: [Dragon/Effect] LV7 ATK/ 2400 DEF/2000**

**Attribute: DARK**

**(3) Meteor Black Dragon**

**Stats: [Dragon/Effect] LV8 ATK/3500 DEF/2000**

**Attribute: FIRE**

**(4) Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon**

**Stats: [Dragon/Effect] LV2 ATK/ 2400 DEF/2000**

**Attribute: DARK**

**Effect: This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card cannot be Special Summoned except by Tributing 1 "Red-Eyes B. Dragon" on your side of the field. Increase the ATK of this card by 300 points for each Dragon-Type monster in your Graveyard.**

**(5) Terrorking Archfiend**

**Stats: [Fiend/Effect] LV4 ATK/ 2400 DEF/2000**

**Attribute: DARK**

**Effect: You cannot Normal Summon or Flip Summon this card unless you have an Archfiend Monster Card on your side of the field. The controller of this card pays 800 Life Points during each of his/her Standby Phases (this is not optional). When this card is specifically designated as a target of the effect of a card controlled by your opponent, when resolving the effect, roll a six-sided die. If the result is 2 or 5, negate the effect and destroy the opponent's card. Also, negate the effect of an Effect Monster that is destroyed by this monster as a result of battle.**

**(6) Vilepawn Archfiend**

**Stats: [Fiend/Effect] LV2 ATK/ 1200 DEF/200**

**Attribute: EARTH**

**Effect: The controller of this card pays 500 Life Points during each of his/her Standby Phases (this is not optional). When this card is targeted by the effect of a card controlled by your opponent, when resolving the effect, roll a six-sided die. If the result is 3, negate the effect and destroy the opponent's card. As long as this card remains face-up on the field, your opponent cannot attack any Archfiend Monster Card on your side of the field except "Vilepawn Archfiend".**

**(7) Infernalqueen Archfiend**

**Stats: [Fiend/Effect] LV4 ATK/ 900 DEF/1500**

**Attribute: FIRE**

**Effect: The controller of this card pays 500 Life Points during each of his/her Standby Phases (this is not optional). When this card is targeted by the effect of a card controlled by your opponent, when resolving the effect, roll a six-sided die. If the result is 2 or 5, negate the effect and destroy the opponent's card. As long as this card remains on the field, during each Standby Phase increase the ATK of 1 Archfiend monster by 1000 points until the End Phase.**

**(8) Darkbishop Archfiend**

**Stats: [Fiend/Effect] LV3 ATK/ 300 DEF/1400**

**Attribute: WATER**

**Effect: The controller of this card pays 500 Life Points during each of his/her Standby Phases (this is not optional). When an Archfiend Monster Card on your side of the field is targeted by the effect of a card controlled by your opponent, when resolving the effect, roll a six-sided die. If the result is 1, 3, or 6, negate the effect and destroy the opponent's card.**

**(9) Desrook Archfiend**

**Stats: [Fiend/Effect] LV3 ATK/ 1100 DEF/1800**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: This card's controller must pay 500 Life Points during each of his/her Standby Phases (this is not optional). When this card is targeted by the effect of a card controlled by your opponent, when resolving the effect, roll a six-sided die. If the result is 3, negate the effect and destroy the opponent's card. When a "Terrorking Archfiend" on your side of the field is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, you can send this card from your hand to the Graveyard to Special Summon the "Terrorking Archfiend".

* * *

**

**Gabriella: "Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: It's my deck's turn to shine as I team up with Jason for the tag-team match. But what can we do against a team that can attack and defend at the same time? Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator!"**

**Please Review.**


	35. Duel Terminal: Round 4

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."

(Digi) "This symbol indicates the card is created by 'Seven Spirits' Digidramon. All rights go to him."

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 32: Duel Terminal-Round 4**

**Part 1: Preparing for Trouble, Making it Double

* * *

**

"We waited a long time to meet you, Subject D-5 Epsilon!" Tyler said.

"I'm sure we'll have loads of fun together!" Taylor proclaimed.

At that moment, Jason realized two things: he had never been in a tag-duel before, and his opponents called him 'Espilon', "How'd you know that was on my dog-tag?"

"Now that our duelists are all in position, let me settle a couple of ground rules," Sonya interrupted, "First, both teams start at 4000 life points per player; second, no one attacks on the first turn; and third, there's no sharing strategies, or cards that aren't yet in play! The rest is just like a basic duel! So with our further ado, let the exhibition round begin!" "Players, activate your duel disks!" Taylor's disk was blue-and-white with a green gem, while Tyler's was red-and-while with an orange gem. Jason and Gabriel activated their respective disks.

* * *

Ken: "Who would've thought I would see your sister in a tournament like this!"

Katherine: "GO FOR IT, GABE! YOU TOO, JASON! I'M COUNTING ON BOTH OF YOU!"

* * *

"LET'S DUEL!"

**Taylor: 4000**

**Tyler: 4000**

**Gabriella: 4000**

**Jason: 4000**

"Tournament newcomers go first-" Tyler started.

"Miss Gabriella Cheshire!" Taylor finished.

"Oh, thank you," Gabriella drew her sixth card, "I draw. And I'll start with (1) Fiend Roar Deity Grimro(1700/1000)!" debuting to the field, a pale woman appeared, dressed in a black-feathered dress. She wore red high-heels and golden braces on her arms, neck and a head dress in her black hair. Her back carried wings of a crow (ATK: 1700), "I place two cards face down and end my turn," two reverse cards appeared in front of Gabriella.

"That means it's my turn!" Taylor called, "For my first move, I summon (8) Numbing Grub in the Ice Barrier(1300/1800) in DEF mode!" a giant green grub-worm, covered in spikes and frost, appeared on the field, "And when this card is summoned, I get to select one monster-card zone! Then my grub gets to freeze it solid! That means it's off limits!" the worm spewed a mess-load of snow-white substance on the center panel of Jason and Gabriella's field, which instantly froze into a large freezing stalagmite, "And now I'll end my turn with a face-down!"

"It's my turn," Jason called, "I summon Genex Gaia in DEF mode!" Jason's rock-covered miner appeared (DEF: 1900), "Next, I activate the spell, Mecha Recycling," a continuous spell was activated, showing spare parts of Genex Controller falling from a chute into a recycle bin, "Whenever I synchro-summon a machine-type monster, a monster that's used is retured to the deck and then re-shuffled. Next, I end my turn with a face-down."

"It's my turn then!" Tyler drew, "I summon (14) Flamvell Guard(100/2000) in DEF mode!" a blazing orb ignited before Tyler. That orb carried a blue dragon with scorching metal scales, curled up in a peaceful slumber, "That ends my turn!"

"Okay, I guess it's my turn again," Gabriella drew, "I summon (2) Fiend Roar Deity Raven(1300/1000) in ATK mode," a black-armored appeared, with dark-purple skin, and bladed wings of dark steel, "Next, I activate my face-down Fallen's Hope," Gabriella activated a continuous trap that shows a wingless Shining Angel falling from the heavens of the Sanctuary of the Sky, with a faint light waiting for him under, "Next I activate Raven's special ability: by sending a card from my hand to the graveyard, his level increases by 1 fore each card, as well as 400 ATK points," when she slid 1 card into her graveyard slot, her monster glowed a shining aura.

Fiend Roar Deity Raven: (Lv: 3/ATK: 1700)

"And since the card I sent to the graveyard is a monster known as (3) Fiend Roar Deity Lurrie(200/400), I can bring him right back," flashing from the grave slot, a grinning winged imp appeared (ATK: 200), "Also, the effect of Fallen's Hope activates, giving me 500 life points whenever I discard from my hand," a golden aura surrounded Gabriella.

**Taylor: 4000**

**Tyler: 4000**

**Gabriella: 4500**

**Jason: 4000**

"And now I tune my Raven with my Grimro and my Lurrie!" the Raven flew to the skies and transformed into four synchro-gates and surrounded the tailing Grimro and Lurrie-which transformed into four stars. All the while, Gabriella chanted:

"Fallen angels descend to a dark inferno! Fan the demonic flames and turn the darkness into light! Synchro-Summon! Appear as the rising devil, (6) Fiend Roar Deity Valkirus(2900/1700)!"

In a shining flash of light, a new fiend emerged from the summoning column. He had pitch-black armor with red-and-gold decoration. His pale skin was as white as a ghost. His giant black wings spread out as he hovered in the air, He debuted with a mighty battle-cry as he flexed its dark-steeled talons (ATK: 2900), "And now I activate his special ability: by sending a fiend-type monster from my hand to the graveyard, I can draw one card from my deck," Gabriella drew from her deck after discarding another card, "And that means another 500 points thanks to the effect of Fallen's Hope."

**Taylor: 4000**

**Tyler: 4000**

**Gabriella: 5000**

**Jason: 4000**

"And the monster I discarded is Fiend Roar Deity Krus, which means I can use her special ability to special-summon a monster back from the graveyard; so I bring back Grimro!" the raven-feathered woman returned (ATK: 1700). Afterwards, the effect of Fallen's Hope once again activated.

**Taylor: 4000**

**Tyler: 4000**

**Gabriella: 5500**

**Jason: 4000**

"And now my Valkirus will attack your Numbing Grub!" the colossal find dived over towards the worm, but then it suddenly dropped to the ground.

"Sorry, but I played my No Entry trap card," Taylor's trap card flipped up, "And all face-up monsters in ATK mode get switched to DEF mode!"

"Then I guess I'll set a card face-down for right now," a reverse card appeared.

"My draw!" Taylor called, "I summon (9) Cryomancer of the Ice Barrier(1300/0)!" a priest wearing majestic clothing appeared, wielding a scepter with an ice sculpture of a snowflake (ATK: 1300). With a wave of that scepter, a strong gust of glittering wind surrounded the entire field, covering Valkirus, Grimro, and the Numbing Grub in frost, "My Cryomancer can call upon the forces of nature, and summon a massive blizzard to blanket the field and monster of level-4 and up! And as long as he's on the field with another Ice Barrier monster, they can't attack!"

"But that affects your monsters as well!" Gabriella pointed out.

"Oh, don't you worry about us-" Taylor started.

"We got it all planed out!" Tyler finished.

"I place one card face-down! My turn's over!" a reverse card appeared in front of Taylor.

"It's my turn," Jason called, "I summon Genex Controller in ATK mode!" his favorite mechanical tuner appeared (ATK: 1400), "Attack Cryomancer!" Controller fired a beam of green energy at the monster.

"I activate the Security Orb trap card!" as soon as Taylor played the trap, a small red sphere with a spotlight fired a beam at Controller, who was forced into DEF position (DEF: 1200), "When one of your monsters attack mine, Security Orb switches the attacker to DEF position!"

"I'm not done yet! I tune Controller with Gaia to synchro-summon Geo Genex!" as Controller's gears spun, the gates surrounded Gaia as Jason chanted:

"Divested sands form an anxious soul! Become the stone that will become its impregnable vessel! Synchro Summon! Geo Genex (1800/2800), Accelerate!"

The geothermal guard appeared on the field (DEF: 2800), but since it was at least level-4, it was covered in frost by the effect of Cryomancer, "And thanks to the effect of Mecha Recycling, Gaia returns to my dueling deck," Jason slid his card into his deck, which then automatically shuffled, "Then i'll switch Gabe's Valkirus to ATK position and end my turn with a face-down," Valkirus stood upright from his previous position, trying to shake off the coldness (ATK: 2900).

"It's my move now!" Tyler drew, "I'll heat things up with (15) Flamvell Grunika(1700/200)!" a purple-scaled dragon appeared on the field, with a mane of scorching-red flames and on its tail. It, too, got covered in frost (ATK: 1700), "Next up, I play the spell card Level Tuning, downgrading all monsters on the field by 1 for the rest of the turn!" a red aura surrounded every monster on the field.

Fiend Roar Deity Valkirus: (Lv: 7)

Fiend Roar Deity Grimro: (LV: 3)

Numbing Grub of the Ice Barrier: (Lv: 3)

Cryomancer of the Ice Barrier: (Lv: 1)

Flamvell Grunika: (Lv: 3)

"And now I use Grunika to ground Miss Cheshire's Grimro!" the dragon began igniting its hands with massive flames, "But wait! I almost forgot to activate Rush Recklessly! This spell give him 700 ATK points for this turn!" the flames grew bigger.

Flamvell Grinika: (ATK: 2400)

Grunika threw both fireballs at the humanoid crow, reducing it to ashes and burnt feathers.

**Taylor: 4000**

**Tyler: 4000**

**Gabriella: 4800**

**Jason: 4000**

"And that's not all! When Grunika destroys a monster in battle, 200 points of damage is inflicted to your life points for each level of stars it had!" the dragon spewed out a spray of fire at Gabriella, who shielded it with her disk.

**Taylor: 4000**

**Tyler: 4000**

**Gabriella: 4000**

**Jason: 4000**

"That ends my turn there!"

"It's my turn," Gabriella called, "I set one card face-down and activate Valkirus' special ability," she discarded a card from her hand in exchange for drawing one card. Then Fallen's Hope activated.

**Taylor: 4000**

**Tyler: 4000**

**Gabriella: 4500**

**Jason: 4000**

"I end my turn with a face-down," a reverse card appeared.

"It's my turn again!" Taylor drew, "I summon (10) Reese the Ice Mistress(800/800) in ATK mode!" a young, red-headed woman appeared, wearing light-blue and golden-steeled armor, and armed with a blaster on her holster, "And since she's a tuner monster, it's time to give Numbing Grub of the Ice Barrier!" the Ice Mistress leap up and transformed into two gates, which encircled the giant grub as the twins chanted:

"The elements of frost create a living glacier! Become the living vessel to encase its frozen heart! Synchro-Summon! Rise form the icy poles, (12) Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier(2300/1400)!"

When the light dimmed, a colossal dragon took place. Its giant wings form of icy glass, as of the rest of its body. Its head is the form of a giant snowflake, just like the tip of its tail (ATK: 2300), "Now I activate Brionac's special ability! By discarding a card from my hand, I get to select one card on the field for each one, and those cards return to their respective owners' hand!" Taylor discarded the last three cards from her hand, "And with three cards removed, I get to return three cards on the field," she pointed to Jason's side of the field, "Brionac! Blow away all of D-5 Epsilon's cards! Forceful Blizzard!" the freezing dragon stretched out its wings and thrusts forward a mighty gust of cold wind, blowing away Geo Genex, as well as Jason's two face-downs, "Now Cryomancer,attack Epsilon directly!" the Cryomancer fired a bolt of cold lightning at Jason.

**Taylor: 4000**

**Tyler: 4000**

**Gabriella: 4500**

**Jason: 2700**

"That ends my turn!"

"Wait, time out!" Jason halted, "I want to know something. First, why do you keep calling me Epsilon? And second, how did you know it was what on my dog-tag!"

"Oh, Goodwin's told us-"

"-all about you!"

"He brought us here-"

"-to test your special power!"

"Goodwin? Special power? Wait! There's one more thing I need to know!"

"And what would that be-"

"-Mister Jason Hutchins?"

"...Why do you guys talk like that?"

Taylor/Tyler: "...Like what?"

"Luke, uh..., Never mond; it's my turn," Jason drew, "I summon Genex Searcher in DEF mode!" the deck-searcher of the Genex appeared (DEF: 400), "And I place these two cards face-down," two reverse cards appeared, "I end my turn."

"And it's my turn!" Tyler drew, "I activate Double Summon, and summon two monster on my field at the same time! So I summon (16) Flamvell Poun(200/200)..." a monkey with flames on its wrists, ankles, and mane appeared (ATK: 200), "and (17) Flamvell Archer(1000/200)!" another fire-being appeared beside the simian; this one being a humanoid with flaming red hair, and an arch-bow made completely of flames (ATK: 1000), "And now I tune my Flamvell Guard with my Flamvell Poun and Flamvell Grunika!" the flaming blue dragon changed into a single synchro-gate, and encircled the other two Flamvells.

"Kindling sparks of heat ignite into a burning soul! Form the scorching vessel to engulf the earth in flames! Synchro-Summon! Ignite into blazing fire, (19) Flamvell Uruquizas (2100/400)!"

In a torrent of flames, a new warrior appeared; he was a tall man wearing a black bodysuit. Flame ignited on his belt and his sholderpads. His face was also rimmed with flames as well. Fire blazed on both of his forearms (ATK: 2100). But he shivered as he was affected by Cryomancer's effect.

"You made a grave mistake summoning a monster to DEF mode! And here's why: when Uruquizas attacks a monster in DEF mode, its owner still takes damage!"

"Too bad it's a level-6 monster," Jason pointed out.

"Not for long, though; I pay 1500 life points to activate Star Blast, and decrease my monster's level by 3!" a red aura surrounded the fire-beast.

Flamvell Uruquizas: (Lv: 6)

**Taylor: 4000**

**Tyler: 2500**

**Gabriella: 4500**

**Jason: 2700**

"And it keeps getting better! Now I release Flamvell Archer and activate its special ability, giving another Fire-Attribute monster another 800 ATK points for the turn!" Archer disappeared and surrounded its flames around Uruquizas.

Flamvell Uruquizas: (ATK: 2900)

"Now attack Uruquizas! Go Burning Meteor Punch!" the monster gathered all of his fire magic into one fist, and then gave the defending Searcher and uppercut, its fires reducing it to molted scraps and ashes.

**Taylor: 4000**

**Tyler: 2500**

**Gabriella: 4500**

**Jason: 200**

"And to top it off, Uruquizas gains 300 ATK points every time he deals battle damage!"

Flamvell Uruquizas: (ATK: 3200)

"At least I still got life points to spare," Jason said, "And as for Genex Searcher, whenever he's destroyed in battle, I can special summon another Genex monster, so long as it has 1500 or less ATK points. So I select Genex Gaia," the rock creature returned from his deck (ATK: 1000).

"Then I guess I set a card face-down and end my turn!"

"It's my turn now," Gabriella called, "I activate the spell card known as Final Light. By paying 100 life points..."

**Taylor: 4000**

**Tyler: 2500**

**Gabriella: 3500**

**Jason: 200**

"I can special-summon a Light-Attribute monster with 1500 or less ATK from my graveyard; and I choose my Fiend Roar Deity Lurrie," the grinning imp returned (DEF: 400), "But in return, my opponent also gets to bring back a monster from their graveyard, so long as that monster has 2000 of less ATK," Gabriella smirked, "But the problem is, there's two of you, and only one can summon a monster. So who's it going to be?"

"Well, I choose my brother Tyler-"

"To summon a monster for Taylor's grave! And I choose to summon (11) Geomancer of the Ice Barrier(800/1200)!" a monk wearing elegant blue robes appeared, hiding a decorated mirror behind her face (DEF: 1200).

Gabriella continued and activated one of her reverse cards, "By activating Call of the Haunted, I bring back Fiend Roar Deity Grimro from my grave in ATK mode," after summoning back her female raven (ATK: 1700), she discarded a card from her hand, all the while gaining 500 more life points from Fallen's Hope.

**Taylor: 4000**

**Tyler: 2500**

**Gabriella: 4000**

**Jason: 200**

"And by sending (4) Fiend Roar Deity Miztoji(400/200) from my hand to the graveyard, I can select one of my Deities on the field, which is then treated as a tuner," Lurrie started glowing a yellow aura, "And now I synchro-summon with my tuner Lurrie and Grimro!" Lurrie created a synchro-gate and surrounded Grimro while Gabriella chanted:

"Fallen angels fall towards the dark abyss! Become the demon to aid the pure in battle! Synchro-Summon! Rise from the depths of the inferno, (7) Fiend Roar Deity Ragin(2300/1800)!"

Another fiend appeared, armed head-to-toe with black-and-golden armor, its wings curled around its sides. The beast unsheathed its golden-hilted broadsword and raised it in the air (ATK: 2300), but it still shivered a little, "Now I activatre Ragin's special ability: when I have one or less cards in my hand, I can draw until I hold two," Gabriella drew twice, "And by activating Valkirus' special ability, I discard another fiend from my hand to draw another card; and that means Fallen's Hope gives me another 500 life points."

**Taylor: 4000**

**Tyler: 2500**

**Gabriella: 4500**

**Jason: 200**

"Now I activate (5) Fiend Roar Deity Soulkius(2200/2100) from the graveyard. By discarding 2 cards from my hand, I can bring him back from the grave," beaming from Gabriella's graveyard slot, a muscular fiend appeared wearing black-and-gold armor on its chest and leg guards, and feathers sprouted out from its wrist (ATK: 2200). All the while, its master gained yet another life-point boost.

**Taylor: 4000**

**Tyler: 2500**

**Gabriella: 5000**

**Jason: 200**

"And with that done, I end my turn."

"Then it's my move!" Taylor drew, "I activate Spellbook inside the Pot!" all four players drew thrice, 'Perfect! Just what I needed!' "Next, I activate two copies of the spell Synchro Boost, and equip them onto Cryomancer, giving him 500 ATK points and one extra level for each one!" Geomancer glowed with energy.

Geomancer of the Ice Barrier: (Lv: 4/ATK: 2300)

"And now's finally the time me and my brother have been waiting for!" Taylor started.

"By tuning Cryomancer with Brionac, me and my sister will finally test the limits of your mark!" Tyler finished.

"Ready, Tyler?"

"Ready, Taylor!"

The ice master separated into three synchro-gates and surrounded the icy dragon, which reduced into six stars. What happened next surprised everyone in acception of the twins. A jet formed in the middle of the tunnel expanded into a twister of wind of almost sub-zero. Th entire audience shivered from the sudden change of temperature.

* * *

Ken: "Hey! S-sinced when d-d-did the weather called for sub-z-z-ero temperatures?"

Katherine: "I'm s-so c-c-cold!"

* * *

_"Descending from the coldest reaches of this world-,"_

_"-the Spirit of Water emerges to bring frozen desolation!"_

_"Awaken, great titan of frost-,"_

_"-and engulf the entire world in glacial ice!"_

Taylor/Tyler: _"Synchro-Summon!"_

When the tornado dispersed, it sent out a mighty blizzard that engulfed the arena in snow. A massive shadow towered over the competitors. When the blizzard died down, a giant dragon appeared on the field. Like Brioniac, it was made completely of ice. It spread its six massive wings, unleashing a numbing-cold gust of wind. A symbol of the kanji 'water' was embedded in a hexagon tablet in its armored chest.

_"The voice of ice-,"_

_"_(Digi)(13)_ Ymir, Titan Wyrm-"_

Taylor/Tyler: _"OF THE ICE BARRIER_(3300/2800)_!"_

The massive dragon let out a mighty roar, breathing out a mist of frozen air (ATK: 3300). All of a sudden, a loud beeping sound was heard. Jason reached into his coat pocket and found out it was coming from his Duel Transer device. He flipped it open and pressed a random button. A screen came on showing the very card Taylor summoned, followed by a computerized female voice, _"Ymir, Titam Wyrm of the Ice Barrier is a level-10 Water-Attribute Aqua-Type monster with 3300 ATK points, and 2800 DEF points."_

"Jason, what did that thing say?" Gabriella asked.

"It said that monster's got over 3000 ATK points! 3300 points, at that!"

"3300? That's stronger than any monster I have in my deck! Can we stop it?"

Jason nodded, but he wasn't so sure, "I hope so."

"I wouldn't hold your breath! Ymir, attack Ragin with Blizzards of Niflheim!" the great frozen beast unleashed a thick mass of frozen energy at the demonic knight.

"I activate my trap card! Draining Shield!" a glowing barrier appeared around Ragin, "When your monster attacks I can use the power of Draining Shield to absorb your blast and add its ATK points to my life point!"

"Yeah! Normally, that would happen, if not for Ymir's special ability!" Taylor then slid a card into her graveyard slot.

The trap card froze solid and shattered, the shield disappearing, "What happened to Draining Shield?"

"Whenever a spell of trap card activates on your field, I can send one card from my hand to the graveyard, and then Ymir negates that card's effect and destroys it!" the dragon onslaught connected and wiped Ragin clean from the field.

"Then I activate Defense Draw!" Gabriella flipped up another reverse card, "Not only does this trap absorbs all battle damage this battle, but I also get to draw one more card!" she drew a card from her deck.

"Then I end my turn."

"And starts mine," Jason drew, "I activate Double Summon! I'm sure you all know what this does, since Tyler used it earlier in the duel. So I summon Genex Controller, and Genex Heat!" the Genex tuner appeared, along with its furnace counterpart (ATK: 1400/2000), "And now I tune Genex Controller with Heat in order to synchro-summon Thermal Genex!" Controller's synchro-gates surrounded Genex Heat as Jason chanted, "Divested sparks form a lost soul; become the torch that will light its forgotten path! Synchro Summon! Thermal Genex, Accelerate!" Jason's advanced furnace appeared (ATK: 2400), but soon after he played Mecha Recycling's effect, the furnace slowly became encased in a thin coat of ice! "What happened to Thermal?"

"I must've forgot to mention that Tymir has another special ability!" Taylor giggled, "Monsters that are summoned this turn can't attack or be sacrificed!"

"I'll end my turn," Jason concluded.

"Then it's my turn!" Tyler drew, "I summon (18) Flamvell Magician(1400/200) to the field in ATK mode!" a red-bearded man wearing black leather clothes, wielding a scepter made of flame, appeared on the field, "Now I tune my magician with my Uruquizas to synchro-summon a monster that will really turn up the heat! Ready, Taylor?"

"When you are, Tyler!" the magician exploded into four synchro-gates which surrounded the flame-fisted beast. The jet column ignited into a massive twister of scorching flames. The intense heat reached out across the stadium and beyond.

* * *

Ken: "First it got too cold and now it's too hot! Just what's going on?"

Katherine: "(panting) I'm burning up..."

* * *

_"Gathering fury becomes-"_

_"-a firestorm of rage!"_

_"Unleash your might-"_

_"-of devastation and ruin!"_

Taylor/Tyler: _"SYNCHRO-SUMMON!"_

The column exploded of the massive flames and yet another massive dragon formed. It swing back its huge molted wings. The sharp talons ending on its long legs clawed in the concrete arena. The kanji of 'fire' burned brightly on a hexagon tablet on its armored chest.

_"Force of-"_

_"-the inferno..."_

Taylor/Tyler: _"(Digi)(20) FLAMVELL NIDHOGG!"_

The dragons massive head belched out fire to signal its debuting welcome (ATK: 3500). Jason took out the beeping Duel Transer again and chect the alarm. The female voice said, _"Flamvell Nidhogg is a level-10 Fire-Attribute Pyro-Type monster with 3500 ATK points and 3000 DEF points."_

"Oh man, this isn't good," Jason thought aloud.

"If you think he looks tough now, just wait until you see one of his special abilities, which annihilates every other card on the field!" Tyler's dragon roared as concentrated heat surrounded its body. Then, in one massive pulse, it unleashed a massive blazing shockwave onto the field. Its scorching heat burned away every card on the field. If they wasn't enough, the four competitors got caught in the crossfire, resulting into a giant explosion.

When the smoke cleared, the dragon of fire stood tall on the field, with its masters Taylor and Tyler. As for the other two competitors, Jason and Gabriella were found near the edge of the arena floor, their limp bodies unable to move...

**TO BE CONTINUED...

* * *

**

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Fiend Roar Deity Grimro**

**Stats: [Fiend/Effect] LV4 ATK/1700 DEF/ 1000**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: While you control a face-up "Fabled" monster, you can send this card from your hand to the Graveyard to add 1 "Fabled" monster other than "Fabled Grimro" from your Deck to your hand.**

**(2) Fiend Roar Deity Raven**

**Stats: [Fiend/Effect] LV2 ATK/1300 DEF/ 1000**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: Once per turn, you can discard any number of cards from your hand and increase the Level of this card by the number of discarded cards, until the End Phase. This card also gains ATK equal to the number of discarded cards x 400, until the End Phase.**

**(3) Fiend Roar Deity Lurrie**

**Stats: [Fiend/Effect] LV1 ATK/200 DEF/ 400**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: When this card is discarded from your hand to the Graveyard, Special Summon it.**

**(4) Fiend Roar Deity Miztoji**

**Stats: [Fiend/Effect] LV2 ATK/400 DEF/ 200**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: You can send this card from your hand to the Graveyard to select 1 face-up "Fabled" monster you control. While that monster is face-up on the field, it is treated as a Tuner monster.**

**(5) Fiend Roar Deity Soulkius**

**Stats: [Fiend/Effect] LV6 ATK/2200 DEF/ 2100**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: You can send 2 cards from your hand to the Graveyard, except "Fabled Soulkius", to Special Summon this card from your Graveyard.**

**(6) Fiend Roar Deity Valkyrus**

**Stats: [Fiend/Synchro/Effect] LV8 ATK/2900 DEF/ 1700**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: 1 "Fabled" Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters**

**Once per turn, you can discard 1 Fiend-Type monster to draw 1 card.**

**(7) Fiend Roar Deity Ragin**

**Stats: [Fiend/Synchro/Effect] LV5 ATK/2300 DEF/ 1800**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: "1 Fabled" Tuner Monster + 1 or more non-Tuner Monsters**

**If this card is Synchro Summoned while you have 1 or no cards in your hand, you can draw cards until you have 2 cards in your hand.**

**(8) Numbing Grub of the Ice Barrier**

**Stats: [Insect/Effect] LV4 ATK/1300 DEF/ 1800**

**Attribute: WATER**

**Effect: When this card is Normal Summoned, select 1 unused Monster Card Zone. While this card is face-up on the field, the selected Monster Card Zone cannot be used.**

**(9) Cryomancer of the Ice Barrier**

**Stats: [Aqua/Effect] LV2 ATK/ 1300 DEF/0**

**Attribute: WATER**

**Effect: While you control another "Ice Barrier" monster, Level 4 or higher monsters cannot declare an attack.**

**(10) Reese the Ice Misstress**

**Stats: [Sea Serpent/Tuner] LV2 ATK/ 800 DEF/800**

**Attribute: WATER**

**Effect: This card cannot be destroyed by battle with a Level 4 or higher monster.**

**(11) Geomancer of the Ice Barrier **

**Stats: [Spellcaster/Tuner] LV3 ATK/ 800 DEF/1200**

**Attribute: WATER**

**Effect: Discard 1 card and declare 1 Attribute. This card cannot be selected as an attack target by monsters with that Attribute. This effect can only be used once while this card is face-up on the field.**

**(12) Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier**

**Stats: [Sea Serpent/Synchro/Effect] LV6 ATK/ 2300 DEF/1400**

**Attribute: WATER**

**Effect: 1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters**

**You can discard any number of cards to return the same number of cards from the field to the hand.**

**(13) Ymir, Titan Wyrm of the Ice Barrier**

**Stats: [Aqua/Synchro/Effect] LV10 ATK/ 3300 DEF/2800**

**Attribute: WATER**

**Effect: 1 'Ice Barrier' Tuner + 1 Level 6 or higher WATER non-Tuner monsters**

**While this card is face-up on the field, your opponent's monsters cannot attack, be used as a Tribute or activate their effects during the turn they are Normal or Flip Summoned. When your opponent activates a Spell or Trap Card, you can discard one card from your hand to negate the activation and effect of that card and destroy it. When your opponent activates an Effect Monster's effect, you can discard two cards from your hand to negate the activation and effect of that card and destroy it.**

**(14) Flamvell Guard**

**Stats: [Dragon/Tuner] LV1 ATK/ 100 DEF/2000**

**Attribute: FIRE**

**(15) Flamvell Grunika**

**Stats: [Dragon/Effect] LV4 ATK/ 1700 DEF/200**

**Attribute: FIRE**

**Effect: When this card destroys a monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard, inflict damage to your opponent equal to the Level of the destroyed monster x 200.**

**(16) Flamvell Poun**

**Stats: [Pyro/Effect] LV1 ATK/ 200 DEF/200**

**Attribute: FIRE**

**Effect: When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard, you can select and add 1 monster with 200 DEF from your Deck to your hand.**

**(17) Flamvell Archer**

**Stats: [Pyro/Tuner] LV3 ATK/ 1000 DEF/200**

**Attribute: FIRE**

**Effect: Once per turn, you can Tribute 1 face-up Pyro-Type monster you control to have all face-up "Flamvell" monsters on the field gain 800 ATK until the End Phase.**

**(18) Flamvell Magician**

**Stats: [Spellcaster/Tuner] LV4 ATK/ 1400 DEF/200**

**Attribute: FIRE**

**Effect: While you control an "Ally of Justice" monster(s), this card gains 400 ATK.**

**(19) Flamvell Uruquizas**

**Stats: [Pyro/Synchro/Effect] LV6 ATK/ 2100 DEF/400**

**Attribute: FIRE**

**Effect: 1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters**

**During battle between this attacking card and a Defense Position monster whose DEF is lower than the ATK of this card, inflict the difference as Battle Damage to your opponent. This card gains 300 ATK each time it inflicts Battle Damage to your opponent.**

**(20) Flamvell Nihdogg**

**Stats: [Pyro/Synchro/Effect] LV10 ATK/ 3500 DEF/3000**

**Attribute: FIRE**

**Effect: 1 'Flamvell' Tuner + 1 Level 6 or higher FIRE non-Tuner monster**

**When this card is Synchro Summoned, destroy all other cards on the field and end your turn. When this card attacks, destroy all Spell and Trap cards your opponent controls. When this card battles, inflict damage equal to the ATK of the other monster to your opponent's Life Points. When this card attacks an opponent's monster and does not destroy it by battle, double this card's ATK until the End Phase. This card inflicts Piercing Damage.

* * *

**

**Katherine: "Now let's look what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: I can't Jason and Gabe are getting beaten by a bunch of weirdos! They're too strong to be taken out by the like of them! I know they can do it! Just wait and see! Tune in next time on Stardust Accelerator!"**

**Please Review.**


	36. Duel Terminal: Round 5

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."

(Digi) "This symbol indicates the card is created by 'Seven Spirits' Digidramon. All rights go to him."

* * *

**Ken: "Now let's get up to speed with YuGiOh 5D's!: Now's the time for the Fortune Cup Semi-Finals. But before we could actually get through the tournament, someone decided to hold a tag-team duel for an exhibition match. With Gabriella as his partner, Jason went up against a pair of creepy twins named Taylor and Tyler. Jason and Gabe managed to put up a fight, but when the twins called out that Flamvell Nihdogg, the arena literally blew up and knocked out Gabe and Jason! You think they can pull through? Let's hop on, rev it up, and find out!"**

**

* * *

**

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 33: Duel Terminal-Round 5**

**Part 2: Fire and Ice**

**

* * *

**

From where we last left, Jason and Gabriella had their wind knocked out of them due to Flamvell Nihdogg. Their bodies just lay there like heaps of scrap. No one knew what to make of it. And no one knew if they could wake up.

"Katherine, get a grip! You gotta calm down!" Ken was grabbing hold onto the raging Katherine, trying to keep her from clawing somebody's face off.

"NO! LEMME GO! LEMME GO! HOW DARE THEY HURT GABE AND JASON LIKE THAT! LET GO OF ME!"

"Look, I know how you feel, but, running over there like a rabbie-ridden dog isn't gonna- Hey, what's that?"

Katherine stopped thrashing long enough to see that her two favorite people were actually moving. Fighting against anguish, they managed to rise to their feet, but barely. And that was enough to have her tear in relief, "Oh, wow! I knew they were alright! I told you so!"

Kenichi just sweat dropped...

* * *

"Gabriella, are you alright?"

"I felt better... And you?"

"Yeah. Just what was that that monster just did?"

"I don't know, Jason; but if I had to guess, they may be the same as that Black Rose character."

Taylor: "Hey! What are you guys whispering about?"

Tyler: "Yeah! Quit stalling and lets keep dueling already!"

Jason and Gabe noticed the twins were waiting on them. They returned to their original positions, "How did you do that?" Gabriella asked the twins.

"Oh, it wasn't us-" Taylor started.

"-It was all Ymir and Nihdogg!" Tyler finished.

* * *

**Meanwhile, in Goodwin's private box...**

"Would you care to explain what happened down there, Goodwin?" Isis Kaiba demanded.

"Well, if you must know, then I'll have to start from the beginning, before the origins of Duel Monsters was first discovered-"

"Oh, another fairy tail? Can't you wait until nighttime for that?"

"Just listen," Goodwin explained, "You see, long ago, there were a series of powerful Duel Monsters known as the Duel Terminals. These 'fairy tails', as you would put it, tell of a time when Duel Monsters once ruled world; some lived in peace and harmony, and others bent on chaos and destruction."

"What does that have to do with Hutchins, that green-haired girl, and those two weirdos of twins?"

"The Duel Terminals each command an army, which can call forth a small portion of their leaders' power. No one knows how many armies they are, but as you see in the arena before you, four of them are being wielded, each by one of the duelists you see now. Taylor commands the Ice Barrier army; Tyler controls the Flamvells; Gabriella uses the Fabled, or the 'Fiend Roar Deities', as were dubbed in ancient times; and finally, Jason Hutchins wields the Genex army."

"That's real nice and all, but that doesn't explain how that dragon exploded like that."

"I'm just about to get there. Out of the many Duel Terminals clans, some of them belonged to a special group known as the Seven Spirits, seven mystical creatures whose power laid waste to the world. However, the spirits' rampage came to an end when they became imprisoned within seven Duel Monster cards, and can only unleash their power when called upon. You've only caught a glimpse of what the spirits of Fire and Water can do."

"And you left these two spirits in the hands of mere mortals, why?"

"As you have known before, we opened this tournament to uncover the five Signers; and what better way to test D-5 Epsilon's power than to have him face of two of the most fearsome Duel Monsters in history..."

* * *

"I end my turn for now," Tyler concluded, "But not before I activate the effect of the face-down I played," a small metal machine appeared and fired a beam from its spotlight, bringing the ice dragon back to the field (ATK: 3300).

"Before Nihdogg activated his special ability, Tyler activated Interdimensional Matter Transporter, to remove Ymir from play and keep her safe from Nihdogg's ability!" Taylor explained, "Let's see what you can do against two dragons at once!" the two dragons stood side-by-side, their elemental energies coliding and causing the air to become heavily humid.

"It's my turn," Gabriella called, 'That Titan Wyrm can negate any spell and trap card just by simply sending a card from her hand to the graveyard. So I'll just have to take that dragon down...' "I activate the spell Pot of Greed, which lets me draw two cards from my deck!" she drew twice, "Next I activate Monster Reborn, and bring Ragin back from my graveyard!" in a flash of light, the gold-and-black armored demon returned (ATK: 2900), "Next, I summon another Fiend Roar Deity Raven tuner-monster!" another crimson-winged fiend appeared (ATK: 1300), "And now I tune my Raven with Ragin to synchro-summon one of my most powerful monsters!" Raven separated into two gates and surrounded Ragin, while Gabriella chanted:

_"The sparkles of light are the seven coronas! Light is mana; power enriched by the heart! Synchro-Summon!"_

"The spirit of mana, (*) Ancient Sacred Wyvern(2100/2000)!" Glowing out of the synchro-summon released a giant serpentine dragon. Its sliver scales glistened in the light, as does its blonde mane. It also had two horns on its head (ATK: 2100), "Thanks to her special ability, she also gains ATK power equal to the difference in me and my opponent's ATK points; as long as mine's higher then theirs," the sacred wyvern's aura began to sparkle brightly with stardust.

Ancient Sacred Wyvern: (ATK: 3100)

"Too bad it can't attack, because while Ymir is on the field, all monsters have to wait one turn to attack or be sacrificed!" Taylor teased as she watched the wyvern recoil and fall into Ymir's cold spell.

"Then I guess I'll have to send some reinforcements. I activate the spell card known as (5D's)Fabled Spirit Jar!" a spell card was played showing a blue-glazed jar, with giant yellow eyes and a big, toothy grin, "With this card, I can remove from play one Field Roar Deity monster in my graveyard," Gabriella showed Valkirus to her opponent before pocketing it, "And since Valkirus is a level-8 monster, I get to draw 4 cards, two for each level!" the Fabled Duelist drew four cards, "Next I equip my wyvern with Shine Palace, giving her 700 more ATK points!" the wyvern began to glow even brighter.

Ancient Sacred Wyvern: (ATK: 3800)

"Now I activate Forbidden Chalice, to increase your monster's ATK power by 400!"

Ymir, Titan Wyrm of the Ice Barrier: (ATK: 3700)

"But why would you-"

-do that to our monster?"

"Because then you monster's effect is negated for this turn!"

"Ancient Sacred Wyvern, attack Ymir, Titan Wyrm of the Ice Barrier! Go, Illumina Blaze!" on command, the wyvern spat out an overflowing torrent of light, which pored through Ymir's ice-encased body, which in turn, shattered the dragon itself into tiny ice shards.

**Taylor: 3900**

**Tyler: 2500**

**Gabriella: 5000**

**Jason: 200**

"Our Titan Wyrm-"

"-It's gone!"

* * *

Ken: "Great move! Without any cards in her hand, Taylor can't activate her Titan Wyrm's ability! And now, Gabriella won't have to worry about Ymir cancelling out her cards!"

Katherine: "She's the best! Absoblutely nothing can stop her! Oh... BUT YOU'RE GREAT TOO, JASON!"

* * *

"Finally, I place one card face-down," a reverse card appeared in front of Gabriella, "It's your move, Taylor."

"You're gonna pay for that!" Taylor shouted as she started her turn, "I activate my own Pot of Greed!" Taylor drew twice, "I summon Reese the Ice Mistress in DEF mode!" the laser-toting ice-user appeared (DEF: 800), "This card can't be destroyed in battle! I'll end my turn right there!"

"Then I guess it's my turn again," Jason drew, "Maybe this will help. I activate the spell Card of Demise," Jason drew four cards; when the forth card was drawn... 'Wait. This card, it's...'

_**Flashback...**_

_It was late at night and Jason still couldn't sleep. He was still wondering why Goodwin did what he had done. Jason was talking about how he was denied his Genex cards for the Fortune Cup. Then Goodwin suddenly decided that he could. It was then he found his answer. Along with that letter, he found a pair of duel monster cards, along with a P.S. note:_

_'Make sure you put on a good show.'_

_"Maybe this is why..."_

_**End Flashback.**_

'Alright, Goodwin; you want a show, then I'll give you one.' "I summon Genex Controller in ATK mode!" a third copy of Jason's primary tuner appeared (ATK: 1400), "Next, I special summon the monster known as (5D's)(*) Omni Genex(1000/1000)!" following the tuner, a giant four-pronged shield appeared, each of the four sections glowed a different color: red, blue, green, and bronze. The center which connected the four together contained a gem glowing a bright scarlet-red, "This level-5 monster can only be summoned when I control a level-4 or lower Genex monster on the field. Now I tune my level-3 Genex Controller with my level-5 Omni Genex, to synchro-summon a new monster of mine!" as the Controller spun its gears, it changed into three synchro-gates. They surrounded the shield as it freed itself from its outer frame, and created five stars. All the while, Jason chanted:

_"Divested stars form into a hidden world of power! Become the new vessel to venture the new frontier! Synchro-Summon!"_

Out of the synchro jet, yet another dragon appeared. Its scales run with multiple colors of light. It was armed with glistening silver armor, "(5D's)(*) _Genex Dragon(2800/2400), Accelerate!_" the dragon roared to remind everyone of its arrival (ATK: 2800), "Check this out! First Genex Dragon gains 200 ATK points for every Genex monster in my graveyard," the spirits of the five monsters in Jason's grave appeared as his dragon powered up.

Genex Dragon: (ATK: 3800)

"Then he gains a special ability depending on the attribute of the monsters used to summon it! And Omni Genex is treated as attributes of fire, water, earth, and wind!" the dragon glowed with energies of all four attributes, "With the power of earth, he cut a monster's power in half!" the dragon then slammed its foot into the ground,

Flamvell Nihdogg: (ATK: 1750/DEF: 1500)

"Now's the time to attack! Genex Dragon, blast that Flamvell to rubble with Omni Flare!" the dragon threw a cannon of multi-colored energy from its mouth, boring through Nihdogg's chest before it completely annihilated it.

**Taylor: 3900**

**Tyler: 450**

**Gabriella: 5000**

**Jason: 200**

"My Flamvell-"

"-Nihdogg!"

"And with the power of fire, Genex also dishes out 300 points of damage for each level of monster he destroys. And since Flamvel Nihdogg is a level-10, you lose 3000 life points!" the dragon fired a barrage of fireballs at Tyler.

"Not so fast! I activate the Damage Polarizer trap card! That means your effect is negated and we all get to draw one card!" after Taylor's reverse card activated, everyone drew once.

Sonya: _"Despite that last move, that was amazing! in a few sweet moves Jason and Gabriella slayed the two twin terrors! I wonder what else they have under their sleeve!"_

"I'll just end my turn with a couple of face-downs for now," two reverse cards appeared.

"It's my turn!" Tyler called, "I activate the equip-spell card, (5D's)Flamvell Tribute!" he played a spell card showing various fire monsters surrounding a glowing pit of lava, "When this card is activated, I can select one Flamvell monster in my graveyard! Then I have to destroy all monsters on my field, then remove fire-attribute monsters in my graveyard from play equal to the level of that monster I'm about to summon, then equip it to this card! So I remove Flamvells Uruquizas and Magician!" Tyler showed his opponent said cards before placing them in his coat pocket.

"But that's a total of 10 stars..." Gabriella wondered aloud, "(gasps)That only means one thing!"

"That's right! Welcome back-"

"-our Flamvell Nihdogg!" Tyler raised his right arm up and a giant burning geyser erupted from the ground. The lava then formed into the shape of a massive beast. The hide became partly hardened, and the fire kanji appeared on its armored chest (ATK: 3500), "But sadly, Nihdogg's special ability is negated, and I can't attack on the turn it's summoned. So I'll end my turn with a face-down for now."

"Then it's my turn," Gabriella drew, "I place one card face-down and end my turn," a reverse card appeared in front of her.

"It's my move!" Taylor snickered at the card she drew, "I activate the Ice Barrier Tribute equip-spell!" a spell card showed many water-attribute monsters surrounded by an ice sculpture on the ground, shaped like a six-pointed snowflake, "This card does the exact same thing my brother did; except it summons an Ice Barrier monster instead!" the symbol appeared on the field, and the spirits of Ice Barrier Dragon and Geomancer appeared before being absorbed into the insignia. Then a shockwave of cold winds rippled through Reese before destroying her. Erupting from a freezing water geyser, the Titan Wyrm returned (ATK: 3300).

"Now Taylor's dragon is back too," Jason grimanced, "We're right back where we started!"

"If you think things look bad now, just wait untill you see her attack!" Taylor proclaimed.

"But you can't! That equip spell should negate it!"

"Oh, it does! That's why I'm activating this!" Taylor slapped a spell card onto her disk, "The Quick Attack spell card allows any frozen monster to attack instantly this turn! Go, Ymir! Attack D-5 Epsilon with Blizzard of Niflmheim!" the ice dragon fired a blast of frozen winds at our favorite Satellite!

"I activate my face-down: the trap Wall of Revealing Light!" as soon as Gabriella's trap activated, a massive barrier wall rose up between opposing sides of the field. The sparkling lights sprinkling around it protected both her and Jason from Ymir's attack, "When activated, I have to pay a multiple of 1000 life points. Then all opposing monsters can't attack if their ATK power is lover than the amount of life points I gave up!"

**Taylor: 3900**

**Tyler: 450**

**Gabriella: 1000**

**Jason: 200**

'I hope this shield will hold out,' Gabriella thought, 'Cause that's just about all I got.'

"I'll end my turn for now!"

* * *

Katherine: "Those dragons just won't go away! No matter how many times they go down, they always come back!"

Ken: "Don't count 'em out just yet, Kat!"

* * *

"It's my turn again," Jason called, "I'll have to skip my turn for now."

"It's my turn!" Tyler started his turn, "Perfect! Just the card I need to finish this, Taylor!"

"Well, what are you waiting for, Tyler?"

"Nothing! I activate the spell card Gold Sarcophagus!" once the card activated, a giant golden box with an eye imprinted on it appeared on the field, "And this card is just what we needed to win this duel! First I search for a card in my deck..." Tyler fanned his deck and looked over it until he found what he needed, "Then I place that card into the sarcophagus, thus removing it from play!-"

"-And during our second standby-phase, the card is added to the players hand! And this is the card we chose for your defeat!" a giant version of the card hovered over the golden box, and what the card was nerved both Jason and Gabriella.

"Oh, no way!"

"That card; it's..."

"That's right!-"

"-It's the trap card Ring of Destruction!"

They were correct; the Ring of Destruction trap card floated above the golden box before settling down inside and sealing itself inside, "Now I activate the spell Nightmare Steelcage!" a giant metal cage descended around the arena, "And now the countdown's been set to one-"

"-And then you're done!"

Taylor/Tyler: "We end our turn!"

The twins' ring can deal damage to every player of the attached monster was powerful enough. So Jason and Gabriella only have one turn each to come up with an idea ti stop it from happening.

"It's my turn!" Gabriella called, "I activare Dian Keto the Cure Master, and use it to increase Jason's life points!" her life points boosted by 1000.

**Taylor: 3900**

**Tyler: 450**

**Gabriella: 1000**

**Jason: 1200**

"Then I place one card face-down and end my turn!" a reverse card appeared.

"It's my turn!" Taylor drew, "I end my turn with a face-down!" another reverse card appeared, "Now you only have one turn left! Make it count!"

"Gladly!" Jason started his turn, "I'll just end my turn with a couple of face-downs!"

"Then here comes my turn!" Tyler drew, "And comes the effect of Gold Sarcophagus!" he added the card to his hand and placed it face-down right away, "Now I activate the spell Hammer Shot! This card destroys a monster with the highest ATK! In this case, it's Flamvell Nihdogg!" a giant meteor quickly descended from the skies and crashed right on top of the dragon.

"But why did you do that?" Gabriella wondered.

"Because with Nihdogg destroyed, it triggers my trap card, Wish of Final Effort!" Taylor flipped over her face-down, "When this trap's activated, my partner gains life points equal to that monster's ATK!"

**Taylor: 3900**

**Tyler: 3950**

**Gabriella: 1000**

**Jason: 1200**

"And finally, I place my last card face-down!" Tyler sets a reverse card, "That's it for my turn!"

Sonya: _"This is it, folks! One draw, one card! If the twins decide to play Ring of Destruction at the start of Gabriella's turn, it's all over!"_

_

* * *

_

Ken: "Now Gabriella has to pull out a win if she doesn't want that ring to blow up in their face!"

* * *

"...It's my turn," Gabriella drew.

"I activate Ring of Destruction!" Tyler equipped the ring onto the ice dragon, "And as soon as it equips to a monster, that monster is destroyed and we all lose life points equal to its ATK power!"

"Taylor/Tyler: "So say bye-bye!"

The ring itself exploded along with the dragon, sending shards of ice every which-away. When the smoke cleared, the current score was this:

**Taylor: 600**

**Tyler: 650**

**Gabriella: 4300**

**Jason: 4500**

"What the heck happened?-"

"-The Ring of Destruction was supposed to take away your life points! Not give them away!"

That was when the caught sight of what caused it...

Taylor/Tyler: "It's a Rainbow Life trap card!"

"That's right," Gabriella's face-down was flipped face-up, "By discarding one card from my hand, I can reverse the effect of your trap card."

"That goes double for me," Jason activates a reverse card, the same one that Gabriella played, "Instead of losing life points, Rainbow Life grants us the same amount!"

"At least you can't attack now-"

"-Because you can't attack with a partner's duel monster!"

"Actually, she can!"

Taylor/Tyler: "Huh?"

"Ready, Gabriella?"

"When you are, Jason," Gabriella flipped her final face-down, "I activate Jason's Masquerade spell card! With this, I can select one monster on my partner's side and treat it as my own for one turn! And whom better than Jason's Genex Dragon!" the dragon roared for his new master, "And with no monsters on your field, it's game over for the two of you!"

Just when they thought they won this match, the twins were countered with an even quicker play! Knowing it was over, they turned to the one thing they could do: the held on to each other and begged!

"Oh no!-"

"-Please don't attack!"

"Please?-"

"Pretty please?"

Taylor/Tyler: "Pretty, pretty please?"

"Beg all you like, but it won't stop us from achieving victory! Genex Dragon, end this!" Genex Dragon fired off one last blast of energy, especially delivered to Taylor, "And since you life points go to zero, then so does your partners!"

**Taylor: 0**

**Tyler: xxxx**

**Gabriella: 4300**

**Jason: 4500**

Sonya: _"And Gabriella wins it for the team! The winner of the exhibition match is Jason Hutchins and Gabriella Cheshire!"_

The crowds cheered on the team for a job well done.

* * *

Katherine: "THEY DID IT! I KNEW THEY COULD DO IT!"

Ken: "Now, if it wasn't for the lack of dramatic dialogue, I'd say this is one of the most intense duels I had ever watched!"

* * *

Back in Goodwin's private box, Goodwin was rather pleased with the results, although it was not the ones expected.

"I guess that guy wasn't a Signer after all, eh?" Isis teased.

"...Then we'll just have to try even harder."

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Ancient Sacred Wyvern**

**Stats: [Fairy/Synchro/Effect] LV7 ATK/2100 DEF/ 2000**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: 1 LIGHT Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters**

**While your Life Points are higher than your opponent's, this card gains ATK equal to the difference. While your Life Points are lower than your opponent's, this card loses ATK equal to the difference. When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard, you can pay 1000 Life Points to Special Summon this card.**

**(2) Omni Genex**

**Stats: [Machine/Effect] LV5 ATK/1000 DEF/ 1000**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: When you control a face-up "Genex" monster on the field, you can special-summon this card. This monster is also treated as FIRE, WATER, WIND, and EARTH. When this card is in the graveyard, you can remove it activate one of the following effect:**

**Select 4 monsters with a different attribute, besides LIGHT and DARK, from your graveyard and add them to your deck. Then draw 2 cards. Draw 4 cards instead if you had no cards in your hand when you activate this card's effect.**

**(3) Genex Dragon**

**Stats: [Machine/Synchro/Effect] LV7 ATK/2800 DEF/ 2400**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: 1 "Genex" Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters**

**This card is also Dragon-Type. This card is also treated as FIRE, WATER, WIND, and EARTH. This card gains 200 ATK for each "Genex" monster in your graveyard. "When this card is destroyed by a card effect, you can special-summon a "Genex" monster from your graveyard. This card gains an effect according to the attribute of all the non-tuner monsters used to synchro-summon it; their effects are optional:**

**FIRE: When this card destroys a monster in battle, inflict damage to your opponent equal to the level of the destroyed monster x300.**

**WATER: Select a card-type (Monster. Spell, or Trap). As long as this card is face-up on the field, you can negate the effects of that card-type.**

**WIND: By sending cards from your hand to the graveyard, you can send Spell and Trap cards your opponent controls to the owner's hand equal to the number of cards discarded.**

**EARTH: Once per turn, halve the ATK and DEF of 1 monster your opponent controls.**

**

* * *

**

**Yusei: "Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: Now's the time for the semi-final matches. Can I withstand Greiger's aerial assault? Find out next time on the next Stardust Accelerator!"**

**Please Review.**


	37. Terror in the Skies

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

* * *

"Now that the exhibition match is over and done, it's time for the Semi Finals of the Fortune Cup!" the MC announced, "First up in our turbo duel, we got Yusei Fudo squaring off against the Tower of Power, Greiger! Start your engines!" the audience cheered.

"Luna, have you seen Leo?" Yanagi asked Luna.

"Yeah, he said he had something important to tell Yusei."

* * *

**In the Kaiba-Dome garages...**

"Yusei..." Yusei Fudo realized that Leo came into the room without looking up from his duel runner, "I'm really sorry about yesterday," he said apologetically, "I was just trying to help."

"I understand, but cheating's never the answer," Yusei replied, "And besides, I don't need to cheat to beat Greiger. Now if you would excuse me, I have a turbo duel to win."

"Go for it! Oh, and take him down!" Yusei smiled and gave Leo a thumbs-up, before he skied off to the track, "I believe in you!" Leo called, "I know you can do it!"

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 34: Terror in the Skies

* * *

**

"Ladies and gentlemen, let's give it up for Yusei!" the MC shouted. Yusei burst onto the track, riding his crimson runner. Cheers and boos were mixed throughout the stadium.

* * *

Confined inside a dark room, Greiger lay wait for what is to come. His thoughts were invaded with a dream he has last night...

'This is for my family. And once I win the match, I'll get exactly what I want.'

_Greiger was back in his home village, riding his duel runner through the valley under the starry night sky. Few people were watching him from the cliffsides- a small boy and his sister, a taller girl. They were Greiger's siblings. He appreciated the support he got from their pep._

_But suddenly, a masive wave of flames flodded the land, taking the two children with it..._

'...Goodwin, have I got a surprise for you...' Greiger lift his eyes open, emitting a murderous glare as light began to shine on him.

* * *

While Yusei drove to the starting line, a powerful roar shook the stadium. It got louder as a burst of smoke exploded from another tunnel and a giant mount rocketed out to the stadium!

"Would you look at that? It's the most powerful duel runner I've ever seen!" the MC shouted, "It's a whopper of a chopper! It's the wheels with appeals! Ladies and gentlemen, it's Greiger and his Beast!" It was a massive duel runner designed as a giant dragster!

* * *

"That's one big duel runner!" Tanner exclaimed, "Yusei gonna have his work cut out for him!"

Leo rushed down the stands towards his friends, "What'd I miss?"

"Just that," Luna pointed, "Greiger's runner!"

Leo looked to where she was pointing and saw Greiger's duel runner, or more importantly, what was attached there as a hood ornament: it was a steel bull's skull! "That's what I saw in Greiger's garage! No wonder he had an alarm! That thing looks so cool!"

* * *

From Goodiwn's private box, Jack is about to witness another duel, 'Greiger, you had better not jeopardize my chances at getting even with Yusei,' his ming growled.

* * *

The two riders drove up to their respective starting places.

"You call that thing a duel runner, Yusei?" Greiger teased, "Did it come with training wheels for ya?"

"Just because you're bigger doesn't mean you're better, Greiger."

"Yeah right! Talk to me after the duel's done! Good luck; 'cause you're gonna need it!"

MC: _"And now, take out your Speed World field spells! Let's activate 'em!"_

Both riders clicked on the field spell and the stadium was surrounded by the familiar blue aura.

MC: _"Remember, only the winner advances and in a turbo duel, only speed-spells can be used!"_

"Get ready to eat my duet!" Greiger said.

The countdown screen appeared, _"Countdown initiated; ready, set, duel!" _the two runners raced forward across the field.

**Yusei: 4000 (0)**

**Greiger: 4000 (0)**

""I'll make the first move, Yusei; I draw!" Greiger drew his sixth card, "And I think i'll start with this: Spell Reactor-RE!" the missile-launching robot appeared on the field (ATK: 1200), "And next I'll throw down three face-downs! You're up!" three reverse cards appeared in front of Greiger's dragster.

Yusei then started his turn, "I summon out my-" but his command was cut off by the sudden roar of Greiger's engines beside him!

* * *

Tanner: "Now how's Yusei supposed to conscentrate when he's got 3000 decibles of horsepower balring in his ear, eh?"

Leo: "Who says he can?"

* * *

"First I lay down a face-down, and then I'll summon my Speed Warrior!" Yusei's skating soldier appeared (ATK: 900).

"In that case, I activate my face-down trap card, Hidden Soldiers!" Greiger flipped up one of his reverse cards, "Now yours truly gets a level-4 monster from my hand. And I got just the one for you. He goes by the mane of Trap Reactor-Y FI!" the green fighter plane mecha appeared (DEF: 1800), "And with this card on my field, Yusei, I only need one more for a big surprise!"

* * *

Dexter: "I think I know that Greiger's got planning, guys."

Tanner: "Yusei better rev it up, and I mean fast!"

* * *

"For the first round Speed Warrior's on the field, he gets double his ATK points," Yusei's monster gained 900 more ATK points.

Speed Warrior: (ATK: 1800)

"Now send his reactor back to the shop!" Speed performed his Super Sonic Slash on Trap Reactor and exploded on collision. When the smoke cleared, how ever, the reactor remained intact.

**Yusei: 4000 (2)**

**Greiger: 3400 (2)**

"No way!"

"Don't tell me you're shocked. I had two face-downs on my field and one of them was Fake Explosion!" Greiger's second reverse card flipped, "And not only does this trap knocks off your low-octane attack, but I get a bonus-as in a level-5 monster from my hand, bringing your surprise early," he slapped a monster card onto his disk, "Summon Reactor-SK, join the party!" the third mech's turbines roared as it appeared on the field (ATK: 2000).

* * *

Dexter: "He's got all three reactor monsters in play!"

Leo: "At least he doesn't have Delta Reactor!"

* * *

"...Now I will activate my Delta Reactor!" the South American played his third trap card, "This trap card sends Summon Reactor, Spell Reactor and Trap Reactor to the graveyard!" the three reactors got swallowed in a blinding light as it formed a column on the track, "I hate to do this to you, Yusei. But like I told you last night, one of us has to lose, and today it's you! I summon, Flying Fortress SKY-FIRE!" the light vanished and a massive monster was formed. Every one of his engines roared as it glided over Greiger and shadowed over Yusei and Speed Warrior.

MC: _"It looks like that bad bike's not just for show! Greiger brings out his big-bang beast in second round!"_

"If you thought it was loud in here before, just get a load of this: you lose 800 life points of damage if you ever summon a monster or place one card face-down. And if that weren't enough, the card you just played will also be destroyed," Greiger rode over next to Yusei, "Just face it, friend. you can't make a move without getting hurt! My family needs me! Which means that you're gonna have to lose this match, Yusei!"

MC: _"We're going into round-3 of this nerve-wracking duel! And Greiger's now in the driver's seat!"_

"It's my turn," Greiger draw, "Flying Fortress SKY-FIRE, take out Yusei's Speed Warrior!" the giant bomber loomed over Speed Warrior. As soon as Speed looked back, he was caught in one of its propellers. Yusei's runner spun out of control when Greiger drove past him.

MC: _"Yusei has taken a lashing! He's spinning out! He's gonna... Wait! He manages to gain control!But it looks like that direct attack has forced Yusei to shift gears and his game plan, as it looks like the 2100 points of damage he took cost Yusei most of the speed counters he had so far!"_

**Yusei: 1900 (1)**

**Greiger: 3400 (3)

* * *

**

Leo: "That's not good."

Yanagi: "He'll be hard to catch up!"

* * *

"Ha! You seem like a nice enough guy, Yusei! But you gotta fall!" Greiger set a reverse card onto his disk and concluded his turn, "Because I got too much riding on this duel to risk losing it!"

"And so do I!" Yusei started his turn, 'With SKY-FIRE on the field, he can destroy the first card I play every turn. So...' "From my hand, I summon Shield Warrior in DEF mode!" a warrior armed with a shield and sphere appeared on the field, gaining its blue aura (DEF: 1600)

"Too bad your warrior can't shield itself from my assault!" Greiger shouted, "Remember, when you play a card, that card is destroyed, and SKY-FIRE rains 800 points of damage from above!" SKY-FIRE unleashed a barrage of missiles and obliterated Shield Warrior. The missiles left over landed directly at Yusei.

**Yusei: 1100 (2)**

**Greiger: 3400 (3)**

MC: _"Yusei spins out again!"_

"I place one card face-down and end my turn!" a reverse card appeared beside Yusei.

MC: _"Greiger's seriously wiping the track with Yusei! If Greiger nails him with a direct attack on his next turn, Yusei's Fortune Cup will be over!"

* * *

_

Leo: "He's done! Greiger sot it so Yusei can't summon a monster without it getting obliterated right away! Man, Greiger won't quit! He's just a hulking tower of ruthlessness!"

Luna: "You didn't notice that when you were dueling him?"

Yanagi: "Leo was just too excited about dueling in the tournament to notice things like his opponent."

Tanner: "I wouldn't put this duel in the books just yet. Yusei can win this."

Yanagi: "He can?"

Tanner: "You bet'cha. Now what do we know about this Flying Fortress SKY-FIRE of Greiger's?"

Leo: "Well, um..."

Dexter: "Well, we know it's big, we know it's loud, we know it's powerful, and we know that once a turn, it destroys a card Yusei plays the second he plays it!"

Tanner: "And as soon as Greiger destroyed Shield Warrior, Yusei placed a card face-down."

Dexter: "I get it! You're thinking the summoning of Shield Warrior was a diversion!"

Tanner: "Mmhm."

Dexter: "His real goal was face-down!"

Tanner: "I'll bet you a corndog that card's a game-changer, like Mirror Force!"

* * *

Jack: 'Yusei has two face-down cards. Let's see if you're cleaver enough to figure out his game, Greiger.'

* * *

"It's my turn," Greiger drew, 'Yusei, you're a very skillful duelist, but so am i. you might think your face-downs are safe, but you better think again, because I got your strategy all figured out. I know you're fighting to help your friends, but I can't let you stop me from completing my mission. And that's why I'm taking the necessary risk to destroy any chances you have of winning this duel. But I know this won't be an easy task to accomplice, so don't expect me to throw any punches. Because I plan on using every card in my deck to make sure that I'm the one taking the victory lap...' "HERE I COME!" engines roared as Greiger sped up his Beast towards Yusei with SKY-FIRE in pursuit, "Behind you, Yusei! Get ready for a direct assault!"

"That's what I was hoping for!"

"But why?" the giant fighter emptied its ammo at Yusei.

"So I can play Wasteland Tornado!" Yusei flipped his reverse trap card, "This card allows me to lay waste to one trap card! And the card i'm destroying is, Limiter Overload!" a dusty twister surrounded Yusei's other reverse card which flipped up and spun around.

"Why are you destroying your own card?" Greiger wondered.

"Because this card's destruction gives me the power to summon Speed Warrior from my graveyard!" Speed returned to the field, kneeling in DEF position (DEF: 400), "And with a monster in DEF mode, I won't take any damage!" Speed Warrior too the damage and was destroyed once more.

"You may have dodged my air assault, but I still managed to rid you of one of your face-down cards, and I didn't need to get rid of any of my other cards to do it!"

'This guy's not messing around,' Yusei thought, 'He figured out my game plan.'

* * *

Leo: "Tanner, he didn't play Mirror Force. Where's Dex's corndog?"

Tanner: "Well, we never shook..."

* * *

"I place one card face-down and end my turn!" Greiger sets a reverse card.

"It's my move!" Yusei drew his card. And that was when something took him back from long ago... "Rally... From my hand, I summon (1) Fortress Warrior(600/1200) in ATK mode!" a four armed golem made of granite rock appeared beside Yusei, holding over its head a giant stone shield that looks like a helipad (DEF: 1200).

"With another monster summoned, another monster gets leveled, and another 800 points of damage are coming your way due to my SKY-FIRE's special ability!" Greiger's Flying Fortress unleashed a barrage of missiles at Fortress Warrior, destroying the golem. Yusei also took the hit from the missiles.

**Yusei: 300 (3)**

**Greiger: 3400 (5)**

MC: _"Greiger has lapped Yusei!"_

"I'm playing the speed spell-Zero Rebirth!" Yusei slapped a spell card into his disk, "Zero Rebirth allows me to bring back a monster destroyed by an effect this turn! But then it's ATK and DEF points become 0! So now I re-summon Fortress Warrior!" the granite golem returned (ATK: 600).

"Why did he summon a monster that can't attack?" Greiger thought aloud.

Yusei glanced at the card he drew earlier...

_**Flashback...**_

_"Oh, almost forgot!" Rally ran up to Yusei, reached into his pocket and gave him a card. "Here, for good luck."_

_"What is it, Rally?" Yusei asked as he took the card._

_"Turbo Booster!"_

_"But wasn't this your father's card?"_

_"Mhm, I want you to take it. Like my dad always says, you'll never know when you might need a boost..."_

_**...End Flashback.**_

"Remember, we got something in common, Greiger," Yusei replied, "We're both out for our own. And if I'm planning on winning this battle, I'll need my friends to get me to the finish line!" Yusei presented his card, "This is for you. Rally; and the rest of my pals! I summon Turbo Booster in ATK mode!" the small yellow launcher appeared to aid Fortress Warrior (ATK: 0), "Now, Fortress Warrior! Attack Greiger's SKY-FIRE!"

"You're just sending your monster to it's doom!"

"Not with Turbo Booster's special ability! You see, by releasing this card, I can take down a monster of yours as long as it's fighting against one of mine!"

"But because of the battle, I'm still able to win this duel!"

"I don't think so! Fortress Warrior can make my battle damage become zero!" Fortress propped itself onto Turbo Booster's launcher arms, "I release Turbo Booster!" Turbo fired off its arms and rocketed Fortress Warrior through the air. It was just what the golem needed as it pummeled throught Flying Fortress SKY-FIRE!

MC: _"Whoa! Talk about a comeback! Yusei has blasted Greiger's SKY-FIRE out of the sky!"_

Pieces of the steel abomination rained down around them as Greiger stared upwards in horror as he witnessed what's left of his Flying Fortress plummeting to solid ground.

MC: _"Incredible! Yusei has blasted Greiger's SKY-FIRE! Oh, the humanity!"_

"You may have grounded my air assault, but let's see how you handle my Chariot Pile trap card!" as soon as Greiger activated his trap, the wheel hubs on his duel runner popped off; giving way to barbed spiked axles that gleamed in the sunlight, you won't defeat me, Yusei! There's too much at stake here!"

_**Flashback...**_

_Light flashed from a video screen in a dark room. A female mechanic appeared on-screen, "Director Goodwin! The next match is about to begin, and we didn't want to start without you!"_

_"Turn this signal off!"_

_"Hey, wait a second, you're not the Director... Who is this? That office is off-limits!"_

_"And so is my village!" the screen then changed, "Now, let's see what you're hiding, Goodwin...," Greiger was told by and anonymous person that morning that Goodwin wasn't to be trusted. So he snuck into Goodwin's office and fiddled with his computer, until he found what he was looking for..._

_"She was right. It's all right there in you personal files. You were responsible for the destruction of my village!" the South American screamed in rage and slammed his fists into the computer desk, heavy tears falling from his flat cheeks, 'I'll get you, Goodwin!' his mind bellowed..._

_**...End Flashback.**_

"I respect you as a duelist, Yusei, but there's something that I must do; and you're just a roadblock standing in my way!" Greiger started his turn, "Chariot Pile's effect activates!" slowed down his runner, targeting the axle spikes towards Yusei, "so once a turn, my chariot can hit your for 800 points of damage. Looks like your life points are about to get speared, Yusei! There's no way you can out-run my attack!"

"Maybe, but I can certainly out-maneuver it by sacrificing my Fortress Warrior!" Yusei's golem slammed its helipad against one of the spikes, but its stone hide stood no chance against it as it was destroyed.

"You can try to defend yourself all you want, but you're only delaying your own defeat," Greiger concluded his turn.

"It's my move," Yusei started his turn, 'And if I don't pull this combo off, I'm done for.' "I summon to the field, Junk Synchron!" Yusei's orange-armored tuner appeared (ATK: 1300), "And because I successfully summoned it out, I can also summon a monster directly from my graveyard. So I re-summon Speed Warrior!" Speed Warrior returned in DEF position (DEF: 400), "And because Speed Warrior's here on the field, I can now give him a little tune-up!"

"That won't help you, Yusei!" Greiger scoffed.

Junk Synchron yanked on his ripcord, transforming into three synchro-gates, surrounding Speed Warrior while Yusei chanted:

"Clustering stars will call upon a new force! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon!"

"Junk Warrior, let's rev it up!" Yusei's scrap-metal synchro appeared (ATK: 2300), "Send his life points to the junk pile! Go, Scrap Fist!" Junk Warrior dashed forward, ready to hit something with his gauntlet.

"Not good enough, Yusei! I'm afraid that Chariot Pile has another effect!"

**Yusei: 300 (5)**

**Greiger: 2600 (7)**

"When your monster attacks me directly, I can sacrifice 800 life points to deflect your monster's attack, and destroy your monster!" a shield surrounded Greiger and his runner, blocking Junk Warrior's punch, before destroying it.

* * *

Leo: "Man, Yusei just can't seem to keep a monster on the field!"

* * *

"I place one card face-down and end my turn," Yusei sets a reverse card.

"It's my move," Greiger started his turn, "And I summon (4) Black Salvo(100/1100)!" a tuner monster appeared, appearing as a giant black bomb with teeth (ATK: 100), "This tuner lets me bring back a level-4 Dark-Attribute machine from my graveyard! So with the power of my Black Salvo, I'm bringing back my Trap Reactor-Y FI!" the green bomber machine returned (ATK: 800), "And now I tune my Black Salvo with my Trap Reactor-Y FI!" Salvo changed into three synchro-gates and surounded Y FI, whose hide dissolved into four stars.

"A synchro-summon?"

"You surprised? You're not the only duelist who uses synchro-monsters," Greiger's shadow was casted when the synchro-tunnel created a new monster.

"I give you, (5) Dark Strike Fighter(2600/1800)!" the new synchro-monster appeared. Humanoid in shape, it was; though his frame takes form of a fighter jet (ATK: 2600), "And now it's going to attack directly!" the machine opened it's torso and unleashed a barrage of missiles.

"Not if I activate my trap card, Synchro Spirits!" Yusei flips his reverse card, "By removing a synchro-monster in my graveyard from play, I can re-summon the monsters that were originally used to summon it! So I'm taking Junk Warrior out of the duel!" Yusei removed the card from his graveyard and pocketed it, "Now Junk Synchron and Speed Warrior can return to the field!" both monsters returned in DEF mode (DEF: 500/400). By Replay circumstances, the attack needed a target, so Junk Synchron took the hit. But thanks to the spirit of Shield Warrior aiding him, he came through without a scratch.

"What's this? How did he survive that attack?" Greiger wondered.

"By taking Shield Warrior in my graveyard and removing it from play, I can negate all battle damage!"

"The I think I'll activate Chariot Pile's effect. The only way to negate this attack is to sacrifice your other monster," Greiger steered his spiked wheels again towards Yusei.

"Well then that's exactly what I'm gonna do!" Speed tried to grab on to one of the spikes, but it was too much as he shattered into pixels.

"You got an answer to everything I throw your way, don't you? Well, let's see what you do about the Ultimate Flare trap card, which allows me to summon an Ultimate Flare token (0/0)!" when Greiger's reverse card activated, a spiked iron ball with a single eye appeared (DEF: 0).

* * *

Leo: "Anyone know what that thing does?"

Tanner: "Well, let's just say that Yusei's about to get knocked around for another 800 points of damage."

Dexter: "And on top of that, Greiger fighter can now deal damage equal to 200 times the level of the released monster, and-"

Tanner: "And, Ultimate Flare token is a level-10."

Leo: "Then that means, umm... well, uh-"

Luna: "10x200 comes out to 2000 points of damage!"

Leo/Yanagi: "2000?"

* * *

"I'm afraid that your fate has been sealed, Yusei," Greiger said, "There is nothing you can do to win this duel now. On my next turn, you're finished!"

MC: _"Things are looking helpless for Yusei! He's holding no cards in his had! One monster on his field! Everything depends on his next draw!"_

The MC was right, but that didn't stop Yusei from going forward, "Let's do this!" he started his turn, "This should get me where I wanna go! I summon (2) Tuningware(100/300) in ATK mode!" a simple-looking robot wearing a yellow scarf and a frying pan over its head appeared on the field, "Next, I tune Junk Synchron to my Tuningware!" the synchro process began again as Yusei chanted:

_"Clustering hearts will bring forth a shining power! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Unite, (3) Armory Arm(1800/1200)!"_

A large metal gauntlet appeared from the synchro-tunnel, flexing its blood-red fingers (ATK: 1800).

"Your grasping has flaws, Yusei! That monster can't defeat my Dark Strike Fighter!"

"Maybe not, but when Tuningware is used fro a synchro-summon, it enables me to draw another card straight to my hand!"

MC: _"Yusei has managed to squeeze some more life out of his floundering deck!"

* * *

_

Leo: "Go, Yusei!"

Yanagi: "You can do it!"

Tanner: "Make this count!"

* * *

'Here we go,' Yusei thought, 'If I don't draw the card I need, Greiger's gonna run over the rest of my life points!' he focused all of his heart and soul into his next card. When Yusei drew and saw the card, he let out a smirk.

* * *

Leo: "Uh, was that a smile? Did I see a smile?"

* * *

"I activate the Synchro Return speed-spell card!" Yusei slapped the spell onto his disk, "And as long as I have 5 or more speed counters, I can use this spell to summon a synchro-monster that I removed from play earlier in the duel. So hello again to Junk Warrior!" Junk Warrior returned (ATK: 2300), "Next I activate Armory Arm's special ability!"

"What?"

Armory Arm's base gauntlet split apart and reassembled on Speed Warrior's own gauntlet, increasing its power.

Junk Warrior: (ATK: 3300)

"Now my Junk Warrior gains 1000 more ATK points! And with that boost, my Junk Warrior's more powerful than your Dark Strike Fighter; so you know what's next! Junk Warrior, attack!" Junk Warrior's new weapon glowed with energy as it raced towards the Dark Strike Fighter. The fighter met the warrior's speed and advanced as well, but froze in fear as he was confronted by a giant, glowing yellow hand. It had no time to escape as it was grasped by the hand. It's grip exerted more than enough gravity to crush the machine into a small iron ball and exploded.

**Yusei: 300 (7)**

**Greiger: 1900 (9)**

"And next I activate Armory Arm's special ability, and that means that this duel is over! When the monster Armory Arm was equipped to destroys a monster in battle, you get slammed with that monster's ATK points! You said that one of us is going to have to lose today, and it looks like that someone is you!"

Greiger knew he could do nothing as he watched the giant hand grow bigger and bigger. He screamed in horror as it loomed over Greiger and his runner, and became silent when it landed on top of him! Greiger's runner spun out of control and it threw Greiger himself off.

**Yusei: 300 (7)**

**Greiger: 0 (7)

* * *

**

Tanner: "He did it!"

Luna: "Yeah!"

Leo: "I know he could pull it off!"

Yanagi: "That was an amazing win!"

Dexter: "Hey, uh, if the duel's over, how come those spiky things haven't vanished yet?"

* * *

Lazar and Goodwin watched the duel from their private box.

"Well, that's too bad."

"Yusei will wake up to his abilities as a Signer soon enough. We must be patient."

'It's a good thing you lost, Greiger,' Jack thought as he stood from his seat, 'Now all Yusei has to do is win one more duel and then he and I can settle things once and for all.'

* * *

_"That's it people!" _the MC announced, _"After 6 rounds of white-knuckle action, this duel has roared to a close with a stunning finale!Satellite Shooting Star has managed to whip out a come-from-behind win! Take a victory lap, Yusei!"_

Yusei stopped his own Runner further up the track and looked back up tuwards the fallen soldier, "Greiger, are you okay?"

_"C'mon, Yusei! Give us a-"_

_"Yuse, I'm fine;" Greiger said over a microphone he held, "but it's not over."

* * *

_

"What's going on?" Lazar exclaimed, turn his mic off!"

* * *

"Uh, ole-ole-oxen! Hello, is this thing even on?" the MC tried to talk over his mic, but no echo came out, "Testing, 123!"

* * *

_"I was hoping to do this differently, but if it needs to be like this, so be it," _Greiger explained, _"I told you about my village, Yusei. I told you about the fire and the destruction. But I've learned the truth. Goodwin isn't going to help me rebuild my village like he promised! How could he when it isn't even there anymore?"_

Yusei gasped, "What do you mean?"

_"Look!" _Greiger pointed to the holographic sphere as it showed a nightly background over a quaint South American village, _"That was my village, before Goodwin came along!"

* * *

_

"How's he doing that?" Lazar shouted angrily as he pressed his hands onto the glass wall, "Someone turn off the sphere!"

"Let him have his moment," Goodwin said calmly.

Lazar looked at him confused.

* * *

_"I hacked into Goodwin's personal files before the duel, and discovered it wasn't a 'natural disaster'!" Greiger continued, "Goodwin came along and decided to use our valley as a little testing ground! He tried to resurrect his precious Crimson Dragon! But he couldn't control the energy. It was much too powerful. Then..." _the sphere then showed the village being engulfed by a bright light, and replaced in burning ruins. The entire crowd responded in gasps and murmurs.

* * *

"He's going to exposed everything!" Lazar shouted, "We much silence him! ...Uh, aren't you concerned?"

"Don't worry," Goodwin mused, "Nobody's going to believe him."

Even Jack and Isis couldn't believe what they're seeing.

* * *

_"My village is GONE!" _Greiger cried, _"Everyone who lived there, all gone! Vanished. No where to be found."_

"Greiger, are you sure about all off this?"

_"I saw the files myself. I'm certain about it, Yusei. And now Goodwin's gonna answer for all his lies!" _Greiger dropped the mic, rushed onto his duel runner, started the engine and began shooting around the track.

"Greiger!" Yusei pleaded.

"Now now that the world knows what you did, it's time for you to pay!" Greiger shouted, "For my friends! My family! My home!" images of Greiger's home and family ran through his mind; and that made Greiger's bloodlust for the Director even stronger, "YOU'RE IVORY TOWER IS ABOUT TO COME TUMBLING DOWN, GOODWIN!" His runner shot onto the crash barrier and off of it, shooting straight for Goodwin's tower!

"NO!" Yusei cried, his runner shooting off of the opposite side of the stadium.

"Yusei!" Greiger exclaimed surprisingly. The two runners smashed together in a scream of tortured metal, and one of the spiked axles was torn loose from Greiger's wheel axle, spinning rapidly as it hurtled towards Goodwin's tower.

Goodwin's eye caught the spike crashing through the window and saw it coming right at him. He caught it with his left arm and managed to maintain its weight as it was still spinning!

"How are you doing that?" Jack couldn't believe what he was seeing. The metal spike ripped Goodwin's glove away and revealed a metal-coated hand!

"His hand!" Isis exclaimed, seeing the metal gleaming in the light as the spike stopped spinning.

* * *

Greiger and Yusei's Duel Runners crashed onto the track below, their riders falling loose onto the ground. Greiger grabbed Yusei by the collar in rage, "How could you, Yusei? I had him!"

"I'm sorry!" Yusei replied, "I'm sorry that Goodwin lied and used you, but listen! Going after him won't solve anything; or get you your answers!"

"What do I do?"

"You'd trust me to figure things out."

Greiger let go of Yusei, clenching his fists as he screamed towards the heavens, _**"GOODWIIIIIIN!"

* * *

**_

In the tower, Goodwin released the axel spike, which crashed to the ground, its luster reflecting in the sunlight...

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE:**

**(1) Fortress Warrior**

**Stats: [Warrior/Effect] LV2 ATK/600 DEF/ 1200**

**Attribute: EARTH**

**Effect: You take no battle damage from battles involving this card. Once per turn, if this card would be destroyed by battle, it is not destroyed. (Damage calculation is applied normally.)**

**(2) Tuningware**

**Stats: [Machine/Effect] LV1 ATK/100 DEF/ 300**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: If this card is used for a Synchro Summon, you can treat it as a Level 2 monster. If this card is sent to the Graveyard for a Synchro Summon, draw 1 card.**

**(3) Armory Arm**

**Stats: [Machine/Synchro/Effect] LV4 ATK/1800 DEF/ 1200**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: 1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters**

**Once per turn, you can equip this card to a monster OR unequip it to Special Summon this card in face-up Attack Position. While equipped to a monster by this effect, that monster gains 1000 ATK. When the equipped monster destroys a monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard, inflict damage to your opponent equal to the destroyed monster's ATK.**

**(4) Black Salvo**

**Stats: [Machine/Tuner] LV3 ATK/100 DEF/ 1100**

**Attribute: DARK**

**Effect: When this card is Normal Summoned, you can Special Summon 1 Level 4 DARK Machine-Type monster from your Graveyard in face-up Defense Position. Its effect(s) is negated.**

**(5) Dark Strike Fighter**

**Stats: [Machine/Synchro/Effect] LV7 ATK/2600 DEF/ 1800**

**Attribute: DARK**

**Effect: 1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters**

**You can Tribute 1 monster to inflict damage to your opponent equal to its Level x 200.

* * *

**

**Jason: Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: Now it's my turn! I'll make sure to win this duel and bring back Rico's Scrap Dragon for him! I hope you're watching, Gammatron and .! And will we know who Nomura really is behind that ruthless mask of hers? All that and more on the next Stardust Accelerator!"**

**Please Review.**


	38. Return of Chaos: Part 1

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."

(Dawn) "This symbol indicates the card is created by 'Duel Academy Stories' Duelist of Dawn. All rights go to him."

(Digi) "This symbol indicates the card is created by 'Seven Spirits' Digidramon. All rights go to him."

(Lily) "This symbol indicates the card is created by Lily Truesdale. All rights go to her."

* * *

Goodwin released the axel spike, which crashed to the ground. He walked forward, then projected himself on many holographic screeds in the stadium. He made sure his metal hand was hidden.

"People of New Domino City," Goodwin announced, "It is always a terrible tragedy that a gifted duelist like our very own Greiger suffers a complete nervous and emotional breakdown following such an intense duel. But rest assured, he'll get all the help he needs."

* * *

The crowds cheered. On the highest level of the stands, the red-haired man in the trenchcoat stood where he was yesterday, his lips curving into a smirk, "I can't believe they're eating up all of Goodwin's lies," he muttered, "Here comes that help."

Down on the track, several Security officers handcuffed Greiger and began to take him away, "Mr. Goodwin's gonna make sure you get everything you deserve!"

"Yusei..." Greiger called, "Promise me you'll take down Goodwin once and for all."

Yusei nodded and Greiger allowed the officers to drag him off of the track.

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 35: Return of Chaos**

**Part 1: Black and White**

**

* * *

**

The competitors' lounge was barely empty now. Most of the finalists remaining were out minding their own business. As for Xiki Nomura, however, it was the perfect opportunity to recuperate before her match. She was lying on a sofa with her face staring at the plush matresses. Although not asleep, Xiki's mind was drifted back to the lost days of yesteryear.

Xiki Nomura was not always the person she is now. Beyond that thick, hardened exterior of hers, is a timid soul waiting to be beheld.

_**Flashback... (11 years back...)**_

_"Mama, how much do you love me?"_

_"Oh? What make you ask something like that? I love you very much."_

_"Because I want you and Daddy to always love me, no matter what."_

_"...Then that's just it. Whether we love or hate you is up to you, sweetie..."_

_**End Flashbac-**_

"LADY NOMURA, WAKE UP!"

Xiki was snapped back into reality by someone's sudden screech. She never liked being disturbed from her meditation. So without looking back, she reached out an arm, grabbed a handful of Hilary's pigtails, and dragged her back to her level.

"You had better have a good reason for screeching in my ear, Hilary," Nomura growled.

"I just wanna tell you your turbo duel's about to start!" Hilary whimpered.

Nomura released Hilary's hair, letting her fall on her rear end. Without saying anything else, Xiki got up and exited the room...

* * *

**Later...**

_"Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome back to the Fortune Cup Wild Card!" _Sonya Harpe announced,_ "First up is Satellite's very own Jason Hutchins!" _Jason raced into the track with his purple riding suit and white duel-runner, _"Facing him is the Underground Dueling Queen, Xiki Nomura!" _Nomura came onto the track next. She wore a dark-blue riding suit with black armor paddings on it. She has a duel runner as well. The thing is, it wasn't even hers. That looks like the same flaming chopper that Hunter Pace used!

* * *

Ken: "That's Hunter Pace's runner!"

Gabriella: "But how is that possible?"

* * *

**Elsewhere...**

In a dark, confined room, Hunter was tied up, bound and gagged in a corner.

* * *

Goodwin calmly pulling a fresh glove from his pocket and putting it on over his mechanical hand. He turned to Isis and Jack, "In case you were wondering about my arm, I was in an unfortunate accident several years ago."

* * *

Both players met the starting line.

"Nomura, you have to promise that once I win this match...," Jason challenged, "You have to give back the card you stole?"

"What card?" Nomura asked darkly, "I don't remember stealing anything."

"You stole one of Rico's cards when you finished him in your last match!"

"Rico... You must mean that kid who challenged me and came out the loser. I'm sorry to disappoint, but I don't think he exists anymore."

"What are takting about..."

"Let's get things started. I activate the Speed World field-spell!" Nomura pressed a button on her runner.

_"Duel mode engaged! Auto-pilot standing by!" _the field-spell activated as it surrounded the stadium.

_"Remember, only the winner advances to the finals and the only spells you can use in a turbo duel are speed spells," _Sonya called, _"Let's get this duel rolling!"_

_"Countdown initiated," _the starting screen said, _"Read, set, duel!"_ both riders raced from their starting places.

**Jason: 4000 (0)**

**Xiki: 4000 (0)**

"The first move is mine!" Xiki started her turn, "I'll start with (1)(5D's) Twilight Archfiend(1000/1000) in DEF mode!" appearing from a blue portal, a skeletal, horned demon knelt beside its master. It's bones were pitch-black while it's muscle was snow-white, "Next I'll throw down three face-downs," three reverse cards appeared around Nomura's runner, "Your up!"

"It's my turn!" Jason drew, "Now, since you have monsters on your field and mine is empty, I can summon this monster without any penalty. Say hello to Big Piece Golem!" the grey granite golem appeared (ATK: 2100), "Attack Nomura's archfiend!" the golem rushed in and headbutted the skeleton, shattering it to pixels.

"It's the first move and you've already played right into my hand!" Nomura called, "When Twilight Archfiend is destroyed by a monster without a light or dark attribute, his destruction gives me the power to summon a different Twilight monster from my deck! I call upon my (*)(5D's) Twilight Knight(1600/1550)!" the dark-armored knight appeared, its sparkling cape flowing in the wind (ATK: 1600).

"Then I'll throw down a couple of face-downs and call it a turn," a pair of reverse cards appeared beside Jason.

"Then it's my turn," Xiki called, "I activate Twilight Knight's special ability! By tossing a monster from my hand to the graveyard, he gains a special ability according to the attribute of that card!" she discarded Twilight Dragon, "Since the monster I sent to the graveyard is a light-attribute, my knight gains 100 ATK points for each of its levels during one of his battles. And since Twilight Dragon's level is 10, he gains 1000 ATK points!" dark light enveloped the knight.

Twilight Knight: (ATK: 2600)

"Twilight Knight, !" the knight lept forward, ready yo slice the golem in half.

"Not so fast! I activate the Draining Shield trap card!" Jason's trap flipped and a barrier appeared around him and his golem. The knight's sword bounced off of the shield and glided back to its original position, "Once your monster attacked, this trap shields my Golem from your knight's attack. It also absorbs its ATK points into my life points.

**Jason: 6600 (3) **

**Xiki: 4000 (3) (32)**

The warrior's ATK points returned to normal (ATK: 1500).

"I summon Twilight Gardna in DEF mode," Xiki growled as she summoned her twilight defender (DEF: 2000), "I end my turn."

* * *

Katherine: "Twilight Dragon was what she used to beat Rico last time. She could've used it. But why didn't she?"

Ken: "Because Twilight Dragon can only be summoned via the effect of her Twilight Zone field spell. And since she couldn't use her normal spells in a turbo duel, she had to think of another alternative to use it."

Gabriella: "So although it can't battle, Twilight Dragon is still a great choice for level-based cards, considering how high a level the dragon is."

Katherine: "Well, it's didn't work on Jason, so there!"

* * *

"It's my move!" Jason started his turn, "I summon the tuner monster, Water Spirit!" the freezing blob of blue liquid appeared (ATK: 400), "Now let's give Big Piece Golem a tune-up!" the spirit transformed into a single synchro gate and surrounded the golem while Jason chanted:

"Divested stars form a gallant hero! Become the steed that will be the guide on his forgotten journey! Synchro Summon! Gaia Knight, The Force of Earth, Accelerate!"

The metal jouster appeared out of the synchro-jet (ATK: 2600), "Now take it to her Twilight Knight! Go, Steele Spiral Strike!"

"I activate my face-downs, the traps (5D's) Walls of Twilight and (Digi) Vanquished Light!" Xiki shouted as she revealed her two reverse cards in that order; one showing a duelist being surrounded by a tower of rings, and the other showing duel-monsters Honest, Archlord Zerato and Airknight Parshath lying unconscious with a roaring Dark Armed Dragon standing over them, "With Vanquishing Light in play, I'm allowed to remove five Light-Attribute monster form my deck and send them to the graveyard!" Xiki removed Twlight Archfiend, Twilight Enchantress, Twilight Pixie, Twilight Knight, and Twilight Gardna.

**Jason: 6600 (4) **

**Xiki: 4000 (4) (27)**

"Next, Walls of Twilight's effect kicks in! That means I take five monsters from my graveyard and remove them from play!" she then pocketed the same monsters she discarded.

* * *

Katherine: "But why would she do that?"

Ken: "Let's just say that Jason's gonna need something other than a kick-butt powerhouse to beat Nomura."

* * *

A giant glowing ring appeared around Xiki's runner and elevated, separating into five rings, each glowing with either light or dark energy. The rings together created a barrier that withstood the knight's attack. So Jason's Gaia Knight's javelin attack was bounced back.

"No way!"

"With Walls of Twilight in play, you can't attack with monster with 1000 times the number of cards I removed from play!" Nomura explained, "So if you were thinking of using that Colossal Fighter again, well, too bad!"

"Then i'll just throw a face-down to end my turn," a reverse card appeared.

"It's my move, then!" Xiki drew her next card, 'Wait, this is...'

_**Flashback...**_

_"Happy Birthday, Xiki!"_

_It was when Xiki Nomura was five years old; and it was her birthday! It wasn't very fancy, actually. Xiki never had anyone over to her house before, so no one else was around. But she didn't mind. All she had were her parents, some cake, and some ice cream... more importantly the cake and the ice cream, but being with her parents was enough too._

_"What's that in your hand, Mama?"_

_"Remember when you asked me for your own Duel Monsters cards a few weeks ago?" her mother held out a deck of cards, "These were mine from a long time ago, but I was waiting for a special occasion to give these to you. Happy Birthday!" when Xiki quickly looked over the cards, there was one in particular that caught her eye. It was a dragon with one half black and the other white._

_"Thank you, Mama!"_

_"Don't forget to make a wish, sweetie," Xiki's father urged._

_The little girl blew out the candles on her cake; all five of them,_

_"What dish you wish for?"_

_"I can't tell you," Xiki said, "It won't come true!"_

_**...End Flashback.**_

'...I'll save this one for later,' Xiki placed the card into her hand, "I release Twilight Gardna to advance-summon my Ying-Yang Dragon!" the released monster created a warphole which called out a massive dragon. Its left side of the dragon is black with a white dot on the left wing and vice-versa (ATK: 2400), "Next comes her special ability: by sending a monster from my hand to the graveyard, one of your monsters is destroyed if they have fewer ATK than that monster," she sent Light and Darkness Dragon into her graveyard slot, "So by sending Light and Darkness Dragon to the graveyard, Ying-Yang Dragon destroys your Gaia Knight!" the dragon created a Ying-Yang symbol appeared below the knight, emitting electric pulses and destroying it, "And now my dragon is free to attack you directly! Go, Ying-Yang Wave!"

"I activate Defense Draw!" the moment the symbol returned under Jason, his trap card canceled it out and destroyed it, "Now, not only does it negate the damage of this battle, I also get to draw a card!" Jason drew.

"Then Twilight Knight attacks you directly!" Xiki's knight slashed at Jason with his sword.

**Jason: 5000 (4) **

**Xiki: 4000 (5) (26)**

"That's it for this turn. Let's see how that deck serves you now."

"Will do!" Jason started his turn, "First I summon Rose, Warrior of revenge in ATK mode," the black-leathered, red-headed kunoichi appeared, wielding her katana (ATK: 1600), "Now I activate the speed-spell, Mind Control! Since I finally have 5 speed counters, I can remove 3 of then to take control of one of your monsters. So I'm taking your Twilight Knight!" Xiki's knight switched sides and moved to Jason's field.

"No biggie. I don't really need it, anyway," she said, "Not while I have more powerful monsters in my disposal!"

"Well, it's a good thing I took it off your hands, right? Next, I activate my face-down (5D's)Attribute Synchron trap!" Jason flupps up a trap card which depicts a shadowed Gaia Knight about to gallop through a synchro gate decorated with each of the six attributes, "Now I use Rose to give _my_ Twilight Knight a little tune-up!" Rose separated into four synchro-gates and surrounded the knight while Jason chanted:

"Divested stars form a timid soul, discovered in the darkest reaches! Unlock the gates to remove the shadows, and create the titan it will become, on its long-forgotten journey! Synchro Summon!"

"Colossal Fighter, Accelerate!" the silver giant appeared from the synchro-summon, powered with its special ability (ATK: 3000), "Next comes the effect of Attribute Synchron! You see, every time I make a synchro-summon, I get to activate one of its six effects!"

"Six effect?" Nomura repeated.

"Six effects; one for each attribute of non-tuner monsters used to synchro-summon it! And since I used a Light-Attribute monster, I gain life points equal to 300 times the level of the synchro-monster. And since Colossal Fighter's level is 8, I get 2400 in life points!"

**Jason: 7200 (3) **

**Xiki: 4000 (6) (26)**

"Next I activate the speed-spell High Speed Crash! This lets me destroy one card on each side of the field. So by destroying my Attribute Synchron, I can destroy your Walls of Twilight!" the five rings shattered around Nomura, "Now's the time for battle! Colossal Fighter, attack Nomura's dragon with Colossus Comet!" the colossal giant smashed through the dragon with one of its massive fists.

**Jason: 7200 (3) **

**Xiki: 3400 (6) (26)**

**

* * *

**

Gabriella: "Amazing!"

Katherine: "He beat that dragon to a pulp! I knew he could do it!"

Ken: "Yeah, but I don't think Nomura's gonna give up so easily."

* * *

Kenichi was right. Nomura knew that this match was far from over, "Why than you. I was counting on that! So I can activate the Light of Shadows trap card!" soon after she played her reverse card, a giant orb of dark energy appeared above her.

"What is that?"

"When a Light-Attribute monster is destroyed, I can special-summon a Dark-Attribute monster from my graveyard, ignoring summoning conditions!"

"Any monster?"

"That's right! From the shadows of the graveyard, I bring back my Twilight Dragon!" a pair of metallic wings popped out of the sphere; followed by a pair of legs, a tail, and two small arms. The orb broke and revealed it's shining torso. The black-and-white dragon glided across the track (ATK: ?).

Sonya: _"Incredible! Xiki Nomura has sent out her headliner without her field spell to help!"_

"And don't forget; his ATK points depend on how many Light-and-Dark monsters I have in my graveyard! And since I have three Twilights lying there, Twilight Dragon's power becomes 3000!"

Twilight Dragon: (ATK: 3000)

With its new power, Twilight Dragon's aura stood up to par with Colossal Fighter's.

Colossal Fighter: (ATK: 3000)

"It still doesn't have enough ATK points to take out Colossal Fighter!" Jason concluded his turn.

"It will soon enough," Xiki started her turn, "And since I have at least 6 speed counters, I can activate the speed-spell Foolish Funeral!" she slapped a spell onto her duel disk, "Now by removing 3 speed counters I get to roll a die. And depending on what number come out, the same number of monster are removed from my deck and sent to the graveyard," a giant holographic die appeared and came skipping across the track. When it stopped, it came out the number 5, "Now I can send 5 cards from my deck to the graveyard."

**Jason: 7200 (3) **

**Xiki: 3400 (4) (20)**

"And that means my dragon gains even more power!"

Twilight Dragon: (ATK: 8000)

"8000 ATK points?"

"And more than enough to wipe out your overgrown fighter. Twilight Dragon! Attack Jason's Colossal Fighter with Chaos Fury!" by his master's command, the dragon created a dark pentagram under Jason and his fighter. An ominous light flashed from the seal and erupted its light around Colossal Fighter. Finally, it all concluded in a giant explosion...

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

(1) Twilight Knight

[Warrior / Tuner] LV4 ATK/1600 DEF/1550

Monster Class-Type: LIGHT

Translation: This card is also treated as DARK. Once per turn, you can discard a Level 4 or lower monster card from your hand to activate the effect that corresponds to the attribute of the discarded monster:

• Light: Increase this monster's ATK by the level as the discarded monster x100 until the end phase.

• Dark: Select a face-up Attack-Positioned monster and change its battle position.

* * *

**Sonya: "Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: We're going into round 4 of the semi-final second round! Who will win? Who will lose? Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator!"**

**Please Review.**


	39. Return of Chaos: Part 2

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."

(Dawn) "This symbol indicates the card is created by 'Duel Academy Stories' Duelist of Dawn. All rights go to him."

(Digi) "This symbol indicates the card is created by 'Seven Spirits' Digidramon. All rights go to him."

* * *

**Jason: "Now let's get up to speed with YuGiOh 5D's!: In the second round of the semi-finals, I'm facing off against Xiki Nomura, a duelist whose monsters can be both Light and Dark! She started out with a variety of those cards, but with my Colossal Fighter, I managed to keep her down. Then, she summoned out her Twilight Dragon, a monster which w all thought can only be summoned with her field-spell, the Twilight Zone. How can I defeat a monster with 8000 ATK points? Let's hop on, rev it up, and find out!"**

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 36: Return of Chaos**

**Part 2: Shades of Grey

* * *

**

In just one move, Xiki Nomura managed to destroy Jason's Colossal Fighter in one breath. And with the 5000 points of damage he took, he lost all of his speed counters.

**Jason: 2200 (0)**

**Xiki: 3400 (4) (20)**

"That is not good at all!" Katherine whimpered.

"With that dragon on the field, it'll be hard to beat her now," Ken said.

Gabriella, however, had her mind on something else besides the duel at hand; or rather someone... 'I can't believe you became this. What happened you you? ...Xiki, what driven you to be like this?'

_**Flashback...**_

_Gabriella was only nine when she met Xiki Nomura when she was 9-years-old. Everyday she would go out and play in the park. That day she was frolicking across the grass, chasing a white butterfly that the spotted days earlier. From days forward, she would spot one of the beautiful insects passing by, but not one with black wings._

_She didn't know how long she was running after it. And she didn't have to worry about that. Because what crossed the black butterfly's path is another one- one with white wings! Before she could ever acknowledge it, she ran smack into something and knocked her one her rear end, letting the butterflies get away._

_While rubbing one her sore spot, she saw that the thing she ran into was a person. It was a girl about Gabriella's age, with long dark-blue hair, and light-blue eyes so clear that they are almost transparent. She wore a frilly blue dress, and she was also rubbing her forehead._

_"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Gabriella quickly got up and helped the other little girl off the ground, "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"_

_"I don't know. I think I'm okay..."_

_"My name is Gabriella! What's your name?"_

_"...Xiki..."_

_**...End Flashback.**_

"If only I knew what happened..."

**Back to the duel at hand...**

"When Colossal Fighter is destroyed in battle and sent to the graveyard, I can re-summon a warrior-type monster. So I special-summon Colossal Fighter back from the graveyard!" Jason's massive warrior reappeared (DEF: 1000).

"You can call on that thing all you like," Nomura said, "There's no way you can out-power my Twilight Dragon."

"We'll see about that," Jason started his turn, 'Xiki's right about one thing: even Colossal Fighter's power can't stand up against her dragon. But who says he has to?' "I set a monster in DEF mode and end my turn!" a reversed monster appeared on the field.

"Then it's my turn!" Xiki drew, "Twilight Dragon! Let's see what this Satellite's hiding! Attack his face-down monster!" the dragon obeyed and blasted the set card to oblivion, which is revealed as a pair of sandals, gloves and wings.

"By flipping over Skelengel, I can draw one card from my deck," Jason drew once.

"I end my turn."

"Then it's my move!" Jason started his turn, 'Perfect! Just the card I need...' "Now I activate the Lightning Vortex speed-spell!" he slapped the spell card onto his duel disk, "As long as I have 3 or more speed counters, I can discard one card from my hand; then all of your monsters are instantly destroyed!" giant bolts of lightning dropped from the skies, and the all aimed right at the Twilight Dragon. In no time at all, the dragon was disinter grated.

"Now, with your dragon out of the picture, all I need to do is land one more attack with Colossal Fighter, and then I win the match!"

"And then you'll make it to the finals. Is that it?" Nomura be-mocked, "Y'know, that would've be wonderful if it were true. I mean, otherwise, I would make sure you never duel again."

"What?"

"First thing I learned as a underground duelist is to vanquish your opponents _permanently_. Once they lost they don't exist anymore. That fact applys to the kid as well. So how can you win back something for someone that doesn't exist?"

"You're just talking trash!"

"No, i'm talking _to_ trash. No matter what you do, you'll never get past me. Especially with Twilight Dragon's special ability!" Nomura took a card from her graveyard slot and slid it into her jacket pocket, "When Twilight Dragon is destroyed due to a card effect, I can take a Light/Dark-Attribute monster and remove it from play. Then my dragon resurrects from the grave!" and from a recently-created black orb, the Twilight Dragon burst out like a bird from it's eggshell!

Twilight Dragon: (ATK: 7000)

Sonya: _"It looks like no matter how many times Jason slays that dragon, it can still return to the field just by removing one other monster from the game!"_

"You heard the lady! Just give up! There's no getting past my dragon!"

"I guess I'll end my turn for now," Jason sighed defeated.

"That's better!" Nomura started her turn, "By removing 2 speed counters, I now activate the speed-spell Foolish Burial! This lets me send one monster from my deck to the graveyard!" Twilight Gardna slid from Xiki's deck and she added it to her graveyard.

**Jason: 2200 (4)**

**Xiki: 3400 (5) (16)**

"And with another monster in my grave, another 1000 points gets added to Twilight Dragon's ATK points!" the dragon roared as it powered up.

Twilight Dragon: (ATK: 8000)

"I place one card face-down and end my turn!"

"Alright, then!" Jason started his turn, "I also set a card face-down and call it a turn."

"Then it's my turn again!" Nomura started her turn again, "I remove 5 spell counters to activate the speed-spell, Gold Sarcophagus!" her counters clocked down by five.

**Jason: 2200 (6)**

**Xiki: 3400 (2) (14)**

"With the power of this spell, I can select any card from my deck, and then remove it from the game!" a single card stuck our from the middle of Nomura's deck and she took it out, "Then during my next Standby-Phase, that card is added to my hand. And guess what card I have in mind," she flipped the card over, revealed as a trap card, with the duel-monster Alien Shocktrooper dashing forward, with its swords stretched out.

Jason knew right away what that card is, "That card, it's-"

"I take it you recognize the Strike Slash trap card. I suppose you also know that it gives a monster on my field 700 extra ATK points, and the ability to inflict piercing damage!" Nomura slid the card into her pocket along with the other removed-from-play cards, "So on my next turn, you know what to expect. I end my turn there."

Jason knew that he has only a couple of turns to figure out a strategy before Nomura could use her Swift Strike and take away the rest of his life points. So he hoped to whatever higher authority somewhere that he could draw the card he needed to stay on his toes.

"Alright, it's my turn," and Jason starts his turn, looking at his card, "...I place one card face-down, and end my turn," a reverse card appeared.

"Is that all you got, Hutchins? I was expecting something better," Nomura started her turn, "But no matter; because on this turn, Strike Slash is added to my hand thanks to Gold Sarcophagus. Now, I place two cards face-downs and call it a turn," she placed two cards into her disk, "One more turn, Hutchins. Make it count!"

* * *

Ken: "You hear that? If Nomura really has Strike Slash, if she plays it one her next turn..."

Gabriella: "...Then Jason's life points will all be wiped out."

Katherine: "But that can't happen! He has to win this duel!"

* * *

"I'm up," Jason started his turn, but decided to skip his turn, "...I think that'll do for now."

"Is that it? One little face-down card and one monster cowering in DEF mode? You really are hopeless, aren't you? Oh well, this duel is over already!" Nomura drew her card and started her turn, "Before my dragon attacks though, I activate my face-down trap Needlebug Nest, to discard the top 5 cards from my deck!" she removed the five cards from her deck.

**Jason: 2200 (9)**

**Xiki: 3400 (5) (6)**

And with four more twilight monsters- Twilights Pixie, Enchantress, Tiger, and Gardna- the dragon gained even more power.

Twilight Dragon: (ATK: 12000)

"And now that he's packing more heat, I think I'll top it off with my Strike Slash!" as soon as Nomura played the trap card, the Twilight Dragon started to advance towards Colossal Fighter, a bright-orange aura burning over its scales (ATK: 12700), "Twilight Dragon, finish him off!" the dragon the burst its entire frame towards its target.

"Not so fast! I activate my trap card, Rainbow Life!" as soon as Jason flipped up, and slipping his only card into his graveyard slot, a veil of different colors surrounded him and his runner, "By discarding a card from my hand to the graveyard, Rainbow Life reverses any and all life-point damage this turn, and change it into life-point _recovery_!" when the monstrous projectile made contact, Jason made it through without a scratch.

**Jason: 11900 (9)**

**Xiki: 3400 (5) (6)

* * *

**

Ken: "That was a close call! I was wondering when he was gonna pull that out!"

Gabriella: "...But how long can he keep it up?"

* * *

Nomura snarled, "That was a lucky break! And your last one at that!" she slapped a card onto her console, "I place one card face-down and end my turn! Let's see what you got!"

Twilight Dragon: (ATK: 12000)

"With pleasure!" Jason started his turn and glanced at the card, "Since I got at least 9000 life points, I can remove one of my speed counters to activate the Ancient Leaf! This lets me draw one card!" Jason drew twice, and his face brightened at the results, 'Perfect! Just the card I need!' "I place one card face-down and end my turn!"

"It's my turn!" Nomura drew, "And I activate the speed spell Enemy Controller!" when she played the speed spell, a large video-game controller materialized before her, "Since I have at least 4 speed counters, I can use this spell to activate one of its two commands, each one consisting a certain button sequence used from the controller itself. And I select the effect that switches you Colossal Fighter's battle position!" Xiki then clicked on the controller's buttons in the following sequence: Up, Left, Down, Right, A. After that, the fighter stood up from its kneeling position (ATK: 3300), "And now's a perfect time for my Twilight Dragon to attack!" the dragon obeyed its master and once again fired at Colossal Fighter.

"Not so fast, Nomura! I play my face-down!" Jason turned his head to his only reverse card.

"Are you forgetting already, Hutchins? Card effects can't touch Twilight Dragon!"

"But I never said it was for him."

"Then what is it?"

"It's a trap card called Prideful Roar!" Jason flipped over his trap, "By paying the difference in our battling monsters' ATk strength, I can match Colossal Fighter's ATK up to par with your Twilight Dragon! But that's not all, he also gets 300 more ATK points!"

**Jason: 3200 (10)**

**Xiki: 3400 (7) (8)**

Colossal Fighter: (ATK: 12300)

* * *

Gabriella: "Wait! I thought you can only pay 1000 life points for Prideful Roar!"

Ken: "You need to keep up with with 'Beckett's Duel' Monthly, Gabe! The card that we see Jack use is a special kind of trap, called Prideful Roar V2! Only pros like him could obtain a card like that!"

Katherine: "Well, it doesn't matter now! Because with that bad Twilight Dragon out of the field, nothing can stop Jason from winning!"

* * *

"And that's more than enough power to take out that dragon of yours! Go, Colossus Comet!" the fighter projected forward and rammed his fist into the dragon's chest, which in turn, shattered it to pixels.

**Jason: 3200 (10)**

**Xiki: 3200 (7) (8)**

Sonya: _"Jason Hutchins has slain the Twilight Mistress' dragon with his raw-powered Colossal Fighter! What will she do without her prized possession on the field?"_

"You must have an answer for everything I throw your way, don't you?" Nomura roused, "Then let's see how you do against another one of Twilight Dragon's abilities! Whenever he's destroyed and sent to the graveyard, all monsters in my graveyard and monster that are removed from play are sent back into my deck! But there's more: I gain life points equal to 300 times the number of Light-Attribute monsters, while you take 300 points of damage for each Dark-Attribute monsters!"

Ken: "And her Twilights all count as both Light and Dark! With 18 Twilights in total, along with her Light-Attribute Yin-Yang Dragon, Nomura will gain back 5700 points while Jason loses-"

Katherine: "A whole lot!"

Gabriella: "Oh dear..."

**Jason: 3100 (10)**

**Xiki: 8800 (7) (27)**

"It's game over, Jason Hutchins!" after Nomura was showered with gold stardust, many swirling orbs of dark energy appeared and shot their way at Jason. But before they could even make impact, a large barrier shone around Jason and deflected the barrage, "What?"

The answer to Nomura's exclamation came in form of a figure above the barrier. It was a young blond woman wearing a white cloak. Her huge metallic wings fitted as two halves to form a large shield in front of her. And to top it all off, a sparkling, golden ring circled around her.

"Sorry, Nomura, but by discarding (1) Halo Gardna(700/1200) in my graveyard and removing it from play, I can negate all life-point damage for this turn!" Jason took out the card and slid it in his pocket.

'First I had this match wrapped in the palm of my hand, then he turns the table by destroying my most powerful beast... I can't let him beat me!' "I end my turn!" Nomura shouted.

"Then it's my move," Jason started his turn, "Since I have 10 or more speed counters, I can remove 6 of them to activate the speed spell Card of Sanctity!" both players' hand replenished to 6 cards, "And now that my hand is back to maximum capacity, I think it's time to invite a few friends of mine to this here party. So I activate the Advancing March speed spell!" a spell was played showing a steed-mounting Marauding Captain leading an army of other warriors, "Since I have four or more counters, I can special-summon a warrior from my hand. So I call to the field my Comrade Swordsman of Landstar!" a small, plump warrior appeared on Colossal Fighter's side, with his shield and sword in hand (ATK: 500), "And thanks to his special ability, all warriors on my side gain 400 ATK points!"

Comrade Swordsman of Landstar: (ATK: 900)

Colossal Fighter: (ATK: 3600)

"Next I summon the union-monster (2) Armor Breaker(800/800) to the battlefront!" another warrior took place on the field, only this one is a small, petite figure with purple armor, with a giant wooden mallet in hand (ATK: 1200), "Time to fight! Colossal Fighter, attack Xiki directly, with Colossus Comet!"

"I activate Soul Barrier trap card!" Nomura plays a trap card that shows a spiritual apparition of the duel monster St. Joan, trying to defend an unknown duelist from an advancing fireball, "With Soul Barrier, I can discard a monster from my hand, and decrease the battle damage i'm about to take by the ATK of the monster I sent to the graveyard!" after tossing a card, a ghostly appearance of a glowing sphere appeared in front of Nomura. Colossal Fighter's attack proved to be superior as its fist plowed through the ghost and connected with Nomura's duel runner.

**Jason: 3100 (5)**

**Xiki: 6800 (6) (21)**

"Armor Breaker and Comrade Swordsman, it's your turn!" the rest of Jason's monsters moved in for the attack. Breaker slammed Nomura with his hammer, while Landstar stabbed her with his sword.

**Jason: 3100 (5)**

**Xiki: 4700 (2) (21)**

"And with that done, I'll equip Armor Breaker with Colossal Fighter, since it's a union monster," Armor Breaker transformed into a large iron hammer, which Colossal Fighter has taken in hand, "Now when Colossal Fighter deal battle damage, one card is also destroyed! Finally, I remove 3 speed counters to activate Dian Keto the Cure Master, giving me 1000 life points! That ends my turn there!"

**Jason: 4100 (2)**

**Xiki: 4700 (2) (21)**

"You will pay for this, Hutchins," Nomura started her turn, "I summon the tuner-monster, (3) Chaos-End Master(1500/1000) in ATK mode!" in a flash of light, a warrior of Nomura's own appeared. It was armed in sparkling-white armor with golden rimming. A golden crown rested over his spiky, white hair. And lastly, a pair of wings were propped on a golden arc behind his back, "Now attack that Comrade Swordsman!" the swordsman was destroyed by a shining energy orb projected by Chaos-End Master.

**Jason: 3500 (2)**

**Xiki: 4700 (2) (21)**

"And with your swordsman gone, your Colossal Fighter loses his precious power boost."

Colossal Fighter: (ATK: 3200)

"Next comes Chaos-End Master's special ability: when it destroys a monster in battle, I can special-summon a level-5 or higher monster from my graveyard, so long as it has 1600 or less ATK points."

"Did I hear right?" Jason questioned, "Are there even monsters like that?"

"I'm glad you asked. Remember the monster from my Soul Barrier? I use Chaos-End Master's special ability to summon the (4) Sphere of Chaos(1600/0)!" and on cue, a darkly-voided portal opened to release a sphere made of pitch-black metal. An acid-green light release from the loose edges, especially from its main eye component (ATK: 1600).

Ken: "But with a level-3 tuner, along with a level-5 monster..."

"Time for a synchro-summon! I tune my Chaos-End Master with my Sphere of Chaos to synchro-summon the Light End Dragon!" Nomura's tuner separated into three rings ans surrounded the sphere, which lost its frame and revealed five stars. All the while, she chanted:

"The sparkles of light are the eight twilights! Light is virtue, enriched by unity! Synchro-Summon! Imbredded from the light, Light-End Dragon!"

The shining dragon appeared to Nomura's aid, with its four feathery wings spread out (ATK: 2600), "I place one card face-down! It's your move!" a reverse card appeared.

"It's my turn, then," Jason started his turn and...

"I activate my Threatening Roar trap card!" Nomura interupted and revealed her face-down, causing a shockwave that emitted to cause the Colossal Fighter to cringe.

"Then I summon (5) Frontier Wiseman(1600/800) in DEF mode!" an elderly man appeared wearing green academic robes, a golden crown, and a monocle on its left eye, "So as long as this guy's on the field, all my warriors can't be targeted by spell cards. After that, I call it a turn!"

"Then it's my turn!" Nomura drew, "I summon Twilight Gardna in DEF mode!" the twilight defender returned (DEF: 2000), "And now it's Light End Dragon's time to attack Colossal Fighter!" the dragon prepared and channeled a mass of light energy in its mouth.

"But you can't!" Jason argued, "Colossal Fighter has more ATK points!"

"Yes, I know. That why I activate my dragon's special ability! By lowering her ATK points by 500, it can lower the ATK of one monster on your field by 1500 until the End Phase!"

"Did you say 1500?" the dragon fired off a blast of energy as it slammed directly through its chest.

Light End Dragon: (ATK: 2100)

Colossal Fighter: (ATK: 1700)

Smaller beams of light extended and skewered the fighter's body. It has been enveloped by the deadly radiance and finally it was caught in a life ending explosion.

**Jason: 3100 (4)**

**Xiki: 4700 (4) (20)**

But when the smoke cleared, Colossal Fighter came out unscathed, "Sorry, but when Colossal Fighter is equipped with a union monster, I can send that monster to the graveyard to take fighter's place if it were to be destroyed in battle."

"Then I'll end my turn with a face-down."

Colossal Fighter: (ATK: 3300)

"Then it's my turn!" Jason drew, "Colossal Fighter, attack Twilight Gardna with Colossal Comet!" the fighter reeled its fist back for an attack.

"I activate Draining Shield!" Nomura's reverse card flipped up, summoning a barrier to counter Colossal Fighter's attack, "And after your attack is negated, it's attack is absorbed into my life points!"

**Jason: 3100 (5)**

**Xiki: 8000 (5) (20)**

"I place one card face-down and end my turn!"

"It's my turn!" Nomura drew, "I release Twilight Gardna to advance-summon another Sphere of Chaos!" Gardna dematerialized into a portal releasing a copy of the black sphere (ATK: 1600) "And when it's summoned by tribute, its special ability allows me to add a level-3 monster from my deck," a card stucked out in the middle of Nomura's deck and she placed it into her hand, revealed as Twilight Pixie, "Next I activate the Double Summon speed-spell, and then summon the same monster, I added to my hand: Twilight Pixie!" the petite, black-fitted fairy appeared above the sphere (ATK: 700), "And now I tune her with my Sphere of Chaos to synchro-summon the Dark End Dragon!" the pixie transformed into three gates and surrounded the sphere as Jason chanted:

"The shrouds of darkness are the eight twilights! Darkness is power, corrupted by solitude! Synchro-Summon! Spawned from the darkness, Dark End Dragon!"

The wicked, dark-scaled dragon appeared (ATK: 2600), "And activating his special ability, I take 500 points out of Dark End Dragon's ATK power, one monster on your field gets sent to the graveyard!" the dragon spewed a black smoke form the wide, toothy mouth on its chest. The moment it reached Colossal Fighter, it smothered the giant in its thick shroud, until there was nothing left of it.

Dark End Dragon: (ATK: 2100)

"So now that that pesky fighter is out of the way, Light End Dragon, attack Frontier Wiseman!" the dragon fired off another blast of light energy.

"I activate my face-down: the trap Wall of Revealing Light!" as Jason flipped the reverse card, a ray of light circled around his runner, and then shot upward in a geyser of radiance, "By paying 3000 life points, monster with the same amount of ATK or lower can't attack! Let's see your Light End Dragon out-shine this maneuver!" the dragon's blast made contact, but was unable to penetrate the barrier.

**Jason: 100 (6)**

**Xiki: 8000 (6) (19)**

"I end my turn with a face-down," Nomura growled.

"It's my move," Jason started his turn, "I summon (6) Big-Shield Gardna(100/2600) in DEF mode!" a big, hulking man with long, black, grizzly hair, kneeling and carrying a giant shield in front of him, "That's it for this turn!"

"It's my turn," Nomura drew, "I remove 2 speed counters to activate the Mystical Space Typhoon speed spell, and blow out that Wall of Revealing Light!" Nomura's spell appeared on the field and created a cyclone, which was strong enough break through Jason's wall and shatter it to pieces, "Next, I use Dark End Dragon's special ability once more, and remove that Big Shield Gardna from the field!" the dragon spewed more black mist from its chest, and smothered the warrior into nothing, "And then, I release Light End Dragon and Dark End Dragon to advance-summon yet another one of my most powerful beast!" the two dragons dematerialize rd and swirled together to form yet another warphole. From there another dragon flew out of the portal. Its scales bear striking resemblance to the Twilight Dragon, with none of the metal coating, "You hailed over my Twilight Dragon; you even lasted over my End Dragons. Now you will face the wrath of the (7) Light and Darkness Dragon(2800/2400)!" the dragon shreiked at the top of its lungs (ATK: 2800).

Sonya: _"I've seen many monsters lately, but this one may be the mother of all Twilights!"_

"If you think he looks tough now, wait until you see him in battle! Attack Frontier Wiseman with Chaos Lightning!" the dragon shot a beam of dark energy, which was spiraled by a bolt of light. The two attacks collided and made contact with the spellcaster. The confrontation ended in his annihilation, "That's it for this turn. Now let's see your cards fend against this dragon!"

"You're about to find out!" Jason started his turn, "This could get me where I wanna go: I summon Fortress Warrior in ATK mode!" the granite warrior with the helepad above his head appeared (ATK: 600), "And next, I can special-summon this guy from my hand! The audience may recognize this combo from Yusei's last match with Greiger! Turbo Booster, join the party!" another warphole appeared and prepare to release its inter-dimensional passenger, until...

"I activate Light and Darkness Dragon's special ability!" Nomura's dragon began to roar as its power somehow weakened.

Light and Darkness Dragon: (ATK: 2300/1900)

"Whenever a card effect is activated, Light and Darkness' power is reduced by 500, and then uses that energy to cancel that effect!" the dragon then spat out a black fireball which knocked the yellow machine back into the portal, which then closed.

"Then I'll end my turn with a face-down," Jason slapped a card onto his disk.

"Then it's my turn," Nomura drew, "I'll place a card face-down and end my turn as well."

"It's my turn," Jason drew, 'Light and Darkness Dragon can negate a card's effect by sacrificing 500 of its ATK and DEF points. Maybe I can use that to my advantage...' "I summon to the field, Torapart!" the dual-character tuner appeared, (ATK: 600), "Next up, I special-summon Turbo Booster from my hand!"

"Haven't you learned already? Light and Darkness Dragon negates any card effect activated! And all I have to do is sacrifice 500 more of its ATK and DEF points!" the whole cycle repeated as the dragon took in more of its energy into its maw.

Light and Darkness Dragon: (ATK: 1800/DEF: 1400)

"And now, by removing 2 speed counters, I activate my face-down, the quick-play speed spell Chain Strike!" Nomura flipped open her recently-set reverse card.

**Jason: 100 (11)**

**Xiki: 8000 (7) (16)**

"But how?" Jason questioned.

"Since my dragon is too busy with your Turbo Booster, I can use any card in the meantime without any penalty! And with Chain Strike's effect that deals 400 points of damage equal to the chain-link number of this spell, you lose 1200 points!" from out of the spell, four ropes of chains shot out and ready to strike their target.

"Not so fast! I activate the trap, Energy-Absorbing Monolith!" Jason's reverse card summoned a large slab of black marble. The chains were not only blocked by the monolith, it also seems as it was absorbing the chains, "Energy-Absorbing Monolith actually 'absorbs' damage effects. So instead of taking damage, the monolith turns it into energy to boost my life points! But that not all I'm doing!" Jason took the only card in his hand and slapped it into the console, "I activate the speed spell, Miraculous Rebirth! By removing 3 speed counters, I can activate this when I have a chain-link of 4 or more, and gives me the power to summon a monster from the graveyard!"

* * *

Ken: 'Alright...'

Katherine: "I don't get it! What just happened? I thought Light and Darkness Dragon negates _any _card effect!"

Ken: "What's happened is Jason found the dragon's weakness! You know what it is?"

Katherine: "Umm... its ATK and DEF power?"

Ken: "Yeah, that too, but what I'm talking about is the Chain mechanism! True that Light and Darkness Dragon can negate card effects, but only of they're played separately!"

Katherine: "But what does that mean?"

Ken: "Turbo Booster was forced back into Jason's hand by Light and Darkness Dragon. The dragon's effect triggers a chain link. And by adding a card to the chain, you don't have to worry about the dragon cancelling it out, because its effect can only be used once per chain! It's like playing Uno!"

Katherine: "So Jason stacked a bunch of cards on top of each other to escape Light and Darkness Dragon's special ability! (Gasps) Oh wow, he's a pure genius! N-E-K-O! That spells genius!"

* * *

"You always seem to have a back-up plan, don't you?" Nomura said acidly.

"Planning ahead is what I do best! I also planned to bring back Colossal Fighter due to Miraculous Rebirth!" and on cue, the giant warrior reappeared to assist Jason once again (ATK: 3400), "Then, the effect of my Energy-Absorbing Monolith kicks in, giving me 1200 life points!" the stone slab shattered into tiny glittering pixels and absorbed themselves into Jason.

**Jason: 1300 (8)**

**Xiki: 8000 (7) (16)**

"Now that that's done, I'll special-summon Turbo Booster from my hand!"

"But you can't! My dragon's ability negates it!" Nomura's dragon blasted back the booster once again.

Light and Darkness Dragon: (ATK: 1300/900)

"Yeah, I know! But your dragon's ability also forces ny monster back into my hand! And so long as its there, so long as a monster's normal-summoned this turn, Turbo Booster can bounce back again and again until your Light and Darkness Dragon runs out of juice!" and the cycle restarts one more time: Jason plays Turbo Booster's effect, and then Light and Darkness Dragon's effect forces it back into his hand.

Light and Darkness Dragon: (ATK: 800/400)

"And since your dragon doesn't have 500 points to continue its effect, It's finally time to welcome Turbo Booster to the party!" after many diversions and interuptions created by the Light and Drarkness Dragon, the yellow mech finally made its appearence (ATK: 0), "And now, I tune my Torapart, with my Big-Shield Gardna and my Turbo Booster, to synchro-summon Seven Swords Warrior!" the tuner hovered upward and became two synchro-gates. The floated down and surrounded the two other monster, reducing their external frame into a total of five stars. All thw while, Jason chanted:

_"The divested stars are the seven steels! Swordsmanship is power enriched by harmony! Become the vessel that unifies the stars! Synchro-Summon! (8) Seven Swords Warrior(2300/1800), Accelerate!" _

And out of a burst of light, a new synchro-monster took form. Its humanoid body was covered head to toe in golden armor. Silver rune lines run all across its suit of armor. Giant shields with royal-blue plating were outfitted on either shoulder. Its helmet, also gold, had a giant thunderbolt encrested ontop of its head. A long, golden sheath carrying a silver katana was strapped to its back. It may not have to chance to use it because of the large silver, blue-plated sabers swinging in each hand (ATK: 2300), "Time to fight! Seven Swords Warrior! Slay that Light and Darkness Dragon with Seven-Star Slash!" Seven Swords Warrior flashed his sabers and skyrocketed towards the Light and Darkness Dragon. He swung his sabers the point he passed the beast. And when he reached the other side, and crossed his sabers, the dragon exploded, ending its twilight terror.

**Jason: 1300 (8)**

**Xiki: 6300 (7) (16)**

Nomura was none too happy about it, "When Light and Darkness Dragon is destroyed, all cards on the field is destroyed! But in return, I get to resummon a monster from my graveyard!" what was left of the dragon gathered together into a condensed core. The core then exploded and increased its radius to fill the width of the track. When the blast dispersed, a sphere made of black metal once again returned, "So welcome back, my Sphere of Chaos (ATK: 1600)."

"Well then, I guess that leaves Colossal Fighter with that! Go, Colossus Comet!" the giant rushed in and thrusted its fist at the sphere. But it was unable to penetrate its shell.

"Fortunately for me, Sphere of Chaos can't be destroyed once a turn!" Nomura stated spitefully, starting her turn, "I activate the speed spell Acceleration Draw, adding two cards from my deck!" the Twilight Duelist drew twice, "And then I place two card face-down!" two reverse cards appeared on the field, 'Bring it on, Hutchins! Because I got your little battlefront all planned out! The moment you attack is the moment you lose!' "I end my turn!"

"Alright, I'm up!" Jason started his turn, "Let's see how this plays out! I activate the speed spell, (5D's) Pot of Fortification!" as Jason played the spell, a giant golden jar, with a glittering knight's visor on the front, appeared in front of him, "By removing 2 speed counters, I can remove 5 warrior-type monsters from my graveyard and add them to my deck! In return, I can draw 3 cards!" So after removing Rose, Gaia Knight, Big-Shield Gardna, Torapart, and Comrade Swordsman of Landstar, Jason drew three times, and surprised at what he has got, 'This is just what I needed!' "Alright, I summon the union-monster, (5D's)(9) Royal Arms Squire(700/300)!" a small warrior in gold armor, with wings made of reflective metal and armed with a gold-and-blue shield, appeared (ATK: 700), "And thanks to his special ability, he become an equip-card for Seven Swords Warrior, giving him 700 ATK points!" soon the warrior, which instantly transformed into a majestic gold-and-blue shield, with a long golden blade at the end, armed itself to the golden swordsman in one hand, while the two sabers were linked on ends in his other.

Seven Swords Warrior: (ATK: 3000)

"And that introduces one of Seven Swords Warrior's special abilities: you see, when he's equipped with an equip-card, he deal 800 points of damage to you!" the warrior tossed his twin sabers at Nomura, and they went back into his hand like a boomerang.

**Jason: 1300 (8)**

**Xiki: 5500 (7) (16)**

"And that's not all! Whenever Seven Swords Warrior is armed with an equip-card, I can disarm him to destroy one card on your field! And I think I'll target that face-down card on the left!" this time, the warrior swung his new sword, firing off a giant disk of energy at one of Nomura's reverse cards, shattering it to pixels.

"My Magical Cylinder!" she cried, "Oh well, at least I still have my Chaos Sphere!"

"Not for long! It's time to bust out my trump card! Go, Wheelie Breaker!" Jason's third and final speed spell shows a massive dragster-bike speeding past other people, the wind tossing them aside as the motorcycle sped by. Jason revved his own runner, accelerating top speed to bypass Speed World's limits, "By removing 6 speed counters, all monster on your side of the field are instantly 'road-raged'!" he skied to a halt and without a moment to waste, shifted into the other direction and drove directly at the chaos sphere, boring through it as he passed.

"Nobody likes a critic, Hutchins!" Nomura shouted.

Turning his runner 90 degrees, Jason gave order for the final blow, "Colossal Fighter, Fortress Warrior, and Seven Swords Warrior, end this!" side by side, by side, the three warriors rushed in for the kill. In one massive strike, Nomura's life points were completely vanquished.

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Halo Gardna**

**Stats: [Fairy/Effect] LV3 ATK/700 DEF/ 1200**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: When a card effect your opponent controls that would inflict damage to your life points activates, you can remove from play this card from your Graveyard to reduce the damage to 0.**

**(2) Armor Breaker**

**Stats: [Warrior/Union] LV3 ATK/ 800 DEF/800**

**Attribute: EARTH**

**Effect: Once per turn, you can equip this card to a Warrior-Type monster you control, OR unequip it to Special Summon this card in face-up Attack Position. While equipped to a monster by this effect, when that monster inflicts Battle Damage to your opponent, destroy 1 card on the field. (A monster can only be equipped with 1 Union Monster at a time. If the equipped monster would be destroyed by battle, this card is destroyed instead.)**

**(3) Chaos-End Master**

**Stats: [Warrior/Effect] LV3 ATK/1500 DEF/1000**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: If this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard, you can Special Summon 1 Level 5 or higher monster with 1600 ATK or less from your Deck.**

**(4) Sphere of Chaos**

**Stats: [Machine/Effect] LV5 ATK/ 1600 DEF/0**

**Attribute: DARK**

**Effect: While this card is face-up on the field its Attribute is also treated as LIGHT. Once per turn, this card cannot be destroyed by battle. When this card is Tribute Summoned, you can add 1 Level 3 monster from your Deck to your hand.**

**(5) Frontier Wiseman**

**Stats: [Spellcaster/Effect] LV3 ATK/ 1600 DEF/800**

**Attribute: EARTH**

**Effect: As long as this card remains face-up on your side of the field, negate the effects of Spell Cards that target face-up Warrior-Type monsters on your side of the field and destroy the Spell Cards.**

**(6) Big-Shield Gardna**

**Stats: [Warrior/Effect] LV4 ATK/100 DEF/ 2600**

**Attribute: EARTH**

**Effect: Negate the activation of a Spell Card that designates this 1 face-down monster. At that time, flip this card into face-up Defense Position. If this card is attacked, change the battle position of this card to Attack Position at the end of the Damage Step.**

**(7) Light and Darkness Dragon**

**Stats: [Dragon/Effect] LV8 ATK/ 2800 DEF/2400**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Effect: This card cannot be Special Summoned. While this card is face-up on the field, its Attribute is also treated as DARK. When a Spell or Trap Card is activated, or the effect of an Effect Monster is activated, that activation is negated and this card loses 500 ATK and DEF. When this card is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, select 1 monster in your Graveyard. Then destroy all cards you control, and Special Summon that monster.**

**(8) Seven Swords Warrior**

**Stats: [Warrior/Synchro/Effect] LV7 ATK/ 2300 DEF/1800**

**Attribute: EARTH**

**Effect: 1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters**

**Once per turn, when an Equip Card is equipped to this card , inflict 800 damage to your opponent. Once per turn, you can send 1 Equip Card equipped to this card to the Graveyard. When an Equip Card equipped to this card is sent to the Graveyard, you can select 1 face-up monster your opponent controls, and destroy it.**

**(9) Royal Arms Squire**

**Stats: [Warrior/Union] LV3 ATK/ 700 DEF/300**

**Attribute: EARTH**

**Effect: Once per turn, you can equip this card to a Warrior-Type monster you control, OR unequip it to Special Summon this card in face-up Attack Position. While equipped to a monster by this effect, when that monster destroys a monster your opponent controls in battle, you can draw 1 card. (A monster can only be equipped with 1 Union Monster at a time. If the equipped monster would be destroyed by battle, this card is destroyed instead.)

* * *

**

**Yusei: "Now, let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: Akiza's up next in the semi-finals. Is there something about her that no one else knows about? Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator!"**

**Please Review.**


	40. Secrets of the Rose

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

"Aaaaaanndd, we have a winner!" Sonya Harpe announced, "The Squire-of-the-Satellite Jason Hutchins, has overcame Xiki Nomura and her armies of chaos, giving him a free pass to the finals!"

"Dammit..." Xiki stood in place of her malfunctioned and (*cough*/stolen) duel-runner, her head hung low over the console, "If I had have held out for just a little longer, my Twilight Shield would've finished him. My reputation is ruined..."

Jason rode over to Xiki. He dismounted his runner and approached the Twilight Duelist, removing his helmet, "Thanks for the duel, Xiki. I had to admit, you really had me on the ropes. I don't think I ever had a duel in a long time," Jason waited for his opponent to say something, but received no response, "C'mon, Xiki. It's only one loss. It's nothing to be upset about. ...Xiki?" he tried to pat his hand on the girl's shoulder, which just proved to be a big mistake, because she fiercely swatted Jason's hand away.

"Keep your grimy hand off me! I don't need your pity!" Xiki Nomura shot him a menacing glare, and stunningly, a flowing river of tears, "You'll probably have a good laugh about this later on, aren't you? So just get it over with!"

"Xiki..." Jason, not used to seeing someone this upset, whether or not they're a hardcore delinquent, felt pity for the girl, "Xiki, I didn't mean to get you upset-"

"You won the match! You go to the finals! You get your stupid card back! You get to move on through the fortune cup! There's nothing else to say, now leave me alone!" Nomura rustled through her coat and took out the Scrap Dragon, which she tossed to Jason for him to catch. Without anything else to say, Jason took one last glance at the wallowing woman before leaving the track.

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 37: Secrets of the Rose

* * *

**

Elsewhere in the KaibaDome, a young man was sitting in front of a computer, with mountains of books stacked around him.

"Disciplinary issues in school, destructive behavior, telekinetic abilities... interesting. Very interesting."

Then, Vice-Director Lazar entered, "Commander Koda, your duel's starting soon."

"Will you leave me alone, I'm sill compiling data. I've got 1872 duels to analyze before I can complete my Black Rose Profile."

"Don't let us down," Lazar advise, "The Director is counting on you."

"He won't be disappointed. Because after I duel the Black Rose, we'll know without a doubt whether she is a Signer or not."

* * *

**Later...**

(The following scene is inspired by one of the reviews posted by GammaTron.)

In one of the many hallways of the building, Jason found Rico Burst with Nathan Turner. Rico was ecstatic on how the duel ended, "You did it! You did it! You! Did! It! He took that...that..."

"Remember, Rico," Nate advised, "Watch your language this time."

"...Kiu(j) nebona, malbonega, malestiminda, filino de inaĉo de kvindek inaĉoj kaj fiulino!" Rico finally shouted.

"Uhhh... What did he say again?" Jason asked, confused.

"He's speaking Esperanto," Nate answered.

"Oh! By the way, I got this back for you," Jason brought out the Scrap Dragon card and gave it to Rico.

He has more excited than before, and more, "My dragon! Thank you, Jason!" then Rico went skipping through the hallway, with Nathan trying to catch up.

"Wait, where are you going?" Jason thought aloud.

"Back out to the stands! My Big-Sis's duel is up next!" Rico continued on forward, until he turned a corner.

'Big-Sis?' Jason thought, 'But that means...'

* * *

**Meanwhile...**

Akiza and the man in the trench coat stood in a corridor.

"You don't need that mask anymore," the man said, gesturing to a white plaster mask in Akiza's hand.

"But I can't duel without it now," she whispered, "I can't face that crowd."

The man smiled and gently touched her shoulder, "C'mon, Akiza. You're not who they think you are. You have special powers. That's why you joined our group. You're a psychic, not a sorceress. You don't need this mask," he softly took the mask, "It's time we stopped living in the shadows, Akiza. It's time the world knew about people like us."

* * *

"Welcome back to our third semi-final duel!" the returning MC announced, "And now, entering the arena, the Dueling Detective, Commander Koda!" Koda appeared on a rising platform on one side of the field, "And his opponent, the Magician with the Moves, the Prestidigitator with the Plan, the Black Rose!" as soon as Akiza appeared, few people decided to just leave, while they were still in one piece, "Get ready to duel!"

* * *

Leo: "Last time she dueled, she almost blew this whole building down!"

Dexter: "I know, but I'm not scared. In fact, it'll be great if that happened! I haven't done one ounce of homework all week long!"

Yanagi: "Ha! I haven't done a day of homework my whole life! And just look; I turned out perfect!"

* * *

In the garage, Yusei was tinkering with his duel-runner until Tanner entered.

"Yusei! The next match is about to begin!"

"Sorry, fixing my runner comes first," he replied, not taking his eyes off his bike.

"But it's the Black Rose! You think she really is a witch?"

"...No, she's more dangerous than that."

* * *

"Let's get this match started!"

Both players activated their disks and then drew five cards.

"Let's do this!"

**Akiza: 4000**

**Koda: 4000**

"I hope you don't mind, but ladies first," Akiza drew her sixth card, "I summon (1) Violet Witch(1100/1200)!" on cue a spellcaster in a violet cloak appeared, with four giant leaves spilled over her arms, and wielding a double-sided golden staff (ATK: 1100), "Next up, I'm casting the field-spell Black Garden that's in my hand!" thick vines sprouted under Akiza's feet, invading the arena to create a dome around the two duelists. Blue roses bloomed all around.

"Well, would you look at that," Koda complimented, "It appears that our Black Rose happens to have a green-thumb, doesn't she?"

But Akiza ignored him, "I play a face-down. It's your turn."

MC: _"The Black Rose is growing strong with her garden field-spell! Will the Commander purne, or be pricked?"_

"Not a bad move...," the Commander started his turn, "Ha! But entirely predictable; because i've been studying you, Black Rose. I know your every card, your every move. Your past is a crime-scene and I'm just following the clues until I bring you down. So for now, I'll play this, and end my turn."

MC: _"One card? But he's dueling a witch! He'll never win playing like that!"_

"Tell the man with the mic he better think again!" Koda broad-casted, "This girl is no witch! She has the power of telekinesis, which means she can move objects with her mind!" Koda the pointed at Akiza, "But that doesn't mean you're above the law! If you think you have power, wait until you see what justice has in store for you!"

* * *

**Meanwhile...**

In Goodwin's private box, he, Jack and Isis watched the duel in progress.

"He's performing well, don't you think?" Goodwin asked the two.

Then Lazar entered the room, "Did you tell Isis and Jack that he is the best profiler The Facility has?" he chuckled as he stood by Goodwin, "He's famous for uncovering the truth. And now that he's dueling, we're expecting the same result.

"It's my turn. I draw," Akiza began, "Violet Witch, attack the Commander directly!" the witch aimed her staff and fired off four bolts of lightning, creating a giant explosion.

**Akiza: 4000**

**Koda: 2900**

MC: _"The Commander is down! Witch or not, the Black Rose's attack can pack a real punch."_

The Commander grunted as he picked himself up, "Feels just like last time, Akiza... During our match at Duel Academy!"

Akiza gasped.

* * *

And so did Yusei.

Tanner: "Did he just say Duel Academy?"

* * *

"I've never forgotten. I was a 3rd-year Obelisk Blue. I was all set to turn pro," he explained, "Then this new girl, a Slifer Red, walks up and challenges me. Your psychic powers destroyed my deck, and almost me along with it. I left Pro-Dueling to study the criminal mind. I tracked down the most dangerous duelist in New Domino City. But I was saving you for last," Coda gestured toward the face-down card he set a turn ago, ""And thanks to Goodwin, I have just the card for my vengeance!"

'But I was just a child then,' Akiza argues to herself, 'I couldn't control my psychic powers.'

"I know you. You think you're better than anyone else," Koda continued, "'Look at me! I'm Akiza the Telekinetic!' Well, guess what! It's time for justice! I play my face-down trap card, Crime and Punishment!" the reverse card flipped up, showing a fiendish, cloaked man holding and ornament of two flickering candles in front of him.

* * *

Nathan: "Crime and Punishment... Isn't that that book by that old Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky."

Ken: "Never heard of 'em..."

* * *

"Crime and Punishment activates when I take battle-damage. And now your monster's completely destroyed!" Koda stated as Akiza's witch exploded into pixels.

"You just activated her special ability," Akiza stated, "If Violet Witch is ever sent to the graveyard, I get to take a plant-type monster from my deck and add it to my hand. It serves you right confusing justice with revenge," the psychic held out a card in her hand, "I select Pheonixian Cluster Amaryllis!"

The Commander smirked, "Akiza, justice _is_ revenge. And your punishment's just beginning. Remember my Crime and Punishment trap card? Well, its other effect is to automatically summon a monster from my hand, like my (5) Agent of Hatred(0/0)!" you can think of the two of us as Good Cop, and Bad Cop!" Koda summons a hideous blue worm, with tentacles squirming out its toothy mouth (DEF: 0). At that moment, several thorny vines shot out and wrapped it around its bind.

"You wanna play in my garden, you gotta pay the price!" Akiza expressed, "My field-spell cuts your monster's ATK points in half!"

"Not a bad counter-effect. Too bad it doesn't have and ATK points for you to take away. I know your deck and how to get around your little tricks!"

"Well, the, you must've seen this coming, didn't you? Because you summoned your Agent of Hatred, I get to summon my very own Rose Token!" a giant rose sprouted on Akiza's side (ATK: 800), "It can't attack, but it can't be destroyed in battle, either. So I guess that leaves us with two monsters that aren't really good for anything."

"You're wrong again!" Koda laughed, "I didn't summon my agent to attack, but to use its special ability!" the worm glowed a blue aura, "So each round, I recover the amount of life points I lost during one of my battles, and that's something your telekinetic powers can't undo."

**Akiza: 4000**

**Koda: 4000**

"Looks like the rose has lost her thorns."

* * *

Leo: "How can he lose if he keeps getting his life points back?"

Yanagi: "Maybe he can't!"

That was when Leo noticed his sister was acting strange.

"What's wrong, Luna? Is your arm still bothering you?"

"No. It's, umm... Nothing."

* * *

"I'm summoning (2) Pheonixian Seed(800/0) to my field in DEF mode!" after a giant, red, one-eyed plant seed appeared (DEF: 0), plant vines wrap around it, "Your last move gave me the idea to play this. See, it doesn't have much ATK worth cutting in half, either, but a Rose Token is still summoned. And because _I _summoned a monster, it's going to appear on _your_ side of the field!" another rose appeared (ATK: 800), "Now I activate my Rose Flame trap card!" Akiza's reverse card flipped, "You see, when a plant-type monster is summoned to your field, 500 points are dealt to you as damage! Now let's see your 'Good Cop-Bad Cop' routine try to handcuff this sweet-smelling maneuver of mine!" her card fired a cannonball of burning rose petals at the Commander. Exploding on contact, the petals scattered around him, making cuts in his suit. The assault ended as the flaming petals float to the ground.

**Akiza: 4000**

**Koda: 3500**

"Not bad," he huffed, "I read about that combo the first time you used it when you were 5-years-old. It was your very first duel... when you learned about your curse."

Akiza gasped. How did he know?

"Your powers were uncontrollable. You couldn't stop. You were a danger to yourself and to others, "He continued, "Then your parents sent you away for help. Yet you refused to give up the power that you have inside you!"

"I'm learning to control it!" the rose cried, "I want to use it so you can help people!"

"Help people? You caused nothing but destruction and pain, including my own! You don't care who your power hurt!"

Akiza looked down in shame. Her hands were trembling, "It's not my fault."

"Incompetence, like ignorance, is no excuse, Akiza!"

"But I'm not looking for excuses..."

"Once this duel is over, I know you will thank me for this. My job is to make sure society's safe," Koda sneered, "And I'm not planning of letting society down. I'm going to send you to a special facility to cure you of your afflictions whether you like it or not!" the Commander then started his turn, "And now to cure you! I activate Mind Monster! Just think of it as a guessing game," the spell summoned an amorphous being of blue plasma, "I choose any monster I want, and of you happen to have it, you lose half of its ATK points. And if my research is right, you got Black Rose Dragon!" one cue, Akiza's synchro stuck out from behind her duel-disk, "I hope you know by now that my research is always right. Now, why don't I give you a taste of your own medicine?" the plasma took shape until it formed a copy of Akiza's dragon, "Black Rose Dragon has 2400 ATK points, which means you take 1200 points in damage. If you play with fire, you're gonna get burned!" the dragon fired off a barrage of flaming petals at Akiza.

**Akiza: 2800**

**Koda: 3500**

MC: _"And the Commander responds with his first attack against the Black Rose!"_

"How about that! 1200 points of damage and I didn't have to use any psychic powers. Unlike your spells, I don't need to cheat. Now I switch my Rose Token it DEF mode and end my turn (DEF: 800)."

"You'll wish you never called me a cheat!" the Black Rose bitterly started her turn, 'No one understands me. I just wanted a normal life, but I can't have one. Destruction always follow me, and the more I ran, the more people I hurt. My only chance was to keep dueling, and hope I could find someone who can help me. That's when I met Sayer. He gave me a home when I was alone. He gave me love when I was in anguish. But most of all he gave me what kept me going where I am now... Sayer gave me strength...'

"Akiza, what are you trying to do? Contact your psychic friends?" Koda broke Akiza out of her trance, "Well, they can't help you! You are all mine!"

* * *

Lazar: "If what the Commander said is true and Akiza has gifted friends, she may be even helpful than we thought. There are rumors of a psychic society. If Akiza's in it, she could lead us to even greater power.

* * *

"You may know about my friends and my deck, but you don't know what's really inside me," Akiza scolded, "You cannot profile someone's heart! And while that's sinking in, this: Phoenixian Seed's special ability! By sending this card straight to my graveyard, I can now summon my other Phoenixian monster from my hand: (3) Phoenixian Cluster Amaryllis(2200/0)!" in the seed's place came a large, slender plant in the shape of a bird. Fern-like wings made its wings, crimson leaves created its tail, and a red bulb formed its head (ATK: 2200). Black Garden's vines then wrapped around it (ATK: 1100).

MC: _"The Black Rose's new monster sprouts to the field, but that won't escape her Black Garden field-spell! Amaryllis loses half its power, and the Commander gets a new Rose Token! And you know what that means! The Rose Flame trap instantly activates! Is it me, or is it getting hot in here?"_

Akiza's trap hurled another ball of flaming petals at the Commander.

**Akiza: 2800**

**Koda: 3000**

"Commander, I don't need psychic powers to tell me what to do next! Amaryllis, attack his Rose Token!" Akiza's monster glowed a red aura, and then unleashed a rapid-fire of flaming seeds from its maw, ripping apart the rose.

**Akiza: 2800**

**Koda: 2700**

"Amaryllis is automatically destroyed, but its special ability activates. I'm sure you know what happens now. The card goes to the graveyard, and you take 800 points of damage. Now, surely your research should've told you that this was coming!"

The cluster disappeared, and a massive hail of burning seeds rained down on the Commander, forcing him to his knees, "It will take a lot more than wilting flowers to defeat me!"

**Akiza: 2800**

**Koda: 1900**

MC: _"Don't forget! Due to the Commander's Agent of Hatred, he gets back the points he lost this round!"_

**Akiza: 2800**

**Koda: 2200**

"You will not defeat me, Akiza. No matter how many times you attack, I will not rest until I make sure you won't hurt anyone again," Koda boldly picked himself up, fighting off that last barrage. He grows more weary by the minute, "And once I win, you're going to that special facility. And once you're there, they will dispatch you of your power."

"Well, I don't plan on losing today! I play a face-down. But don't draw just yet, because I can now summon Phoenixian Cluster Amaryllis from my graveyard in DEF mode," after removing a card from her graveyard, Akiza resummoned her crimson cluster (DEF: 0).

MC: _"Black Rose gets her monster back, and the Commander get another Rose Token!"_

"Which means my trap activates again!" Akiza's Rose Flame unleashed another flurry of petals, which was the last move she made for now. Koda stumbled and regained his footing.

**Akiza: 2800**

**Koda: 1700**

MC: _"Ouch! It's another fiery finish from the Black Rose!"_

"You're asking for it, Akiza," Koda huffed from the last blast, and started his turn, "And now you're about to get it! I knew you would fill my field of Rose Tokens. It's what I wanted. Now I can sacrifice them to summon my own monster, (6) The Mad Profiler(2600/1600)!" after the Commander released the three roses, a new monster formed: a deranged-looking man sat in a giant chair, reading a giant book, "I'm sure you notice the professional resemblance, since we're both in the same business of making sure that you never hold a dueling deck again!"

MC: "_What a move! But that doesn't mean the Mad Profiler escapes the Black Rose's field-spell _(ATK: 1300)_! But this time the token's on Akiza's side of the field!"_

'You're doing everything I knew you would, Akiza,' Koda thought, 'I got a little singed in the process, but vengeance is mine.' "Now I'll tap into my Mad Profiler's special ability! So by sending a spell card to the graveyard, I can remove any other spell card from the game. And I got just the one in mine..." Koda's discarded spell made it to the Mad Profiler's hand and disappeared as soon as it touched it. That caused Akiza's field-spell to crumble to dust.

Leo: "He got rid of the Black Garden field-spell!"

Dexter: "And now all the monsters will get back their ATK points that were cut in half!"

Mad Profiler: (ATK: 2600)

"My Profiler can work on other cards than just spells. I can send a monster card to the graveyard to destroy any one of your monsters!" the profiler used another card to remove Cluster Amaryllis, leaving Akiza's field bare, "Ha! That even thing up, now what do you say we battle! Mad Profiler, attack! Take out her Rose Token with Mad Dash Destruction!" the profiler hopped off its chair, skipping quickly on its bare feet, and slamming his open book at the token.

**Akiza: 1000**

**Koda: 1700**

"Now that that token's out of the way, I think its time for me to end this duel and put you away for good!"

* * *

Lazar: "The Black Rose can't keep this up for long. It's just a matter of time before the Commander pushes this girl to her limits and activates her signer power."

* * *

"Next up I play my equip-spell. And it goes by the name, Destruction Insurance!" Koda's new spell appeared and shone behind the Mad Profiler.

* * *

Tanner: "I heard about that new card. Once you equip it to a monster, if your opponent destroys it, you lose half its ATK points. Looks like the Commander got the prototype. And with Black Rose down to her last few life-points, if she takes out Mad Profiler, she takes herself out as well."

* * *

"Now I play a second equip-spell, Life Law Protection!"

* * *

Tanner: "Whoa. Another protection spell. His card's totally safe. Now if she changes its ATK points, like with a special ability of one of her other cards, then that card's destroyed. Not even Black Rose Dragon can save her now."

Yusei: "...Don't be so sure, Tanner."

* * *

"And now it's my turn," Akiza drew, "And I summon (4) Twilight Rose Knight(1000/1000)!" coming to her aid became a young, silver-haired girl in black armor and a white cape. She also wielded a sword in her hand (ATK: 1000), "My combo won't be a surprise. Alter all, aren't you the profiler who spent the last few year studying me? Instead of offering to help, you treat me like a monster. So all I can do is answer with a monster of my own! I tune my knight with my two roses!" the dark knight formed into three synchro-gates and surrounded the two Rose Tokens as the Black Rose chanted:

_"Chilling flames engulf the entire world. Pitch-dark flower, set into bloom! Synchro Summon! Appear now, Black Rose Dragon!"_

Everyone trembled in horror when the Black Rose's ace arises, creating a whirlwind of dark rose petals (ATK: 2400).

"There is nothing you can do to surprise me! I know your each and every move!" the Commander laughed irritably, "Just face it, Black Rose! You can't win!"

At that point, the hairpiece Akiza had fell to the ground, uncurling the six long tentacle-like bangs over her face, instantly gaining a dye of dark-blue. Also, her psychic aura became more threatening, "It's about more than winning, it's about finding your place in the world. And I know where I belong..." her eyes showed a strong mass of malice, "I'M THROUGH HIDING BEHIND THE MASK! I'm going to show everyone my true powers and win this duel!" Black Rose Dragon roared in response, receiving a blue tone over her usually blood-red scales, the same color as her master's hair at the moment.

"Good luck! Because as long as I have me equip-spells and line-up of monsters I'm untouchable!"

MC: _"The Commander is right! Psychic, witch, it doesn't matter! The Black Rose can't get to him! What will she do?"_

"I activate Black Rose Dragon's special ability! If I take a plant-type monster from my graveyard and remove it from play, then then your monster's ATK points go to 0!" Akiza gave her dragon the Phoenixian Seed from her graveyard. After devouring it in one bite, the dragon quickly coiled its thorny appendages around the Mad Profiler.

"Ha! That's what I was waiting for!" Koda shouted with glee, "Now my equip-spell activates! And because you used Black Rose Dragon's special ability, my Life Law Protection automatically destroys it!" the black mist surrounding the profiler fired a beam of orange light that pierced through the dragon's neck. The Black Rose Dragon's existence ended in a giant explosion. The shock caused something to go off in Akiza's arm. Crimson marks ran across her right arm in the form of an animals' claw. As true as it was, Akiza Izinski is the third Signer.

* * *

Her dormant power is now well know as it was monitored on Zigzix's D-Tector, "We've captured her energy! I can pay my student loan!"

* * *

Lazar: "Excellent. Three down and only two more to go."

* * *

Remains of Black Rose Dragon scorched on the arena, shadowing Akiza's menacing form. Her dragon was once again slain, but she was far from through, "A nice spell... But I still have my trap card Curse of Rose!" the Black Rose's reverse card opened, unleashing a flurry of blue petal, surrounding Commander Koda, "You spent so much time studying my past, that you never even stopped to look at the person I've become. And because of that, your life-points will suffer for your narrow-mindedness. My Curse of Rose is a new card, one you can never profile! Because your monster's ATK points are altered, you take damage equal to the difference in its original ATK power and its new ATK power! I'm sorry, but you brought this upon yourself!"

The Commander screamed in horror as the petals spun faster and faster, creating a cyclone of roses. Each and every rose petal were razor-sharp and sliced deeply in Koda's body. The twister dispatched as his bloody, fallen form lied in a crater, with the petals falling over him.

**Akiza: 1000**

**Koda: 0**

MC: _"It's over! The Black Rose is our winner! She'll move on to the finals to take on Yusei Fudo!"_

"Ugh... I didn't see that coming," the crippled commander mumbled, surprisingly able to speak.

Sayer stood over the stands, impressed with Akiza's performance, "Another fine victory. You have grown. You're beginning to control your powers. I hope you can do the same against Yusei. I have a feeling that he will be biggest test you have ever faced."

* * *

Even Tanner and Yusei saw Akiza's latest onslaught, "I can't say that I envy you, Yusei. That Black Rose is a one-woman wrecking machine!"

"You're telling me. Tomorrow's match might be my most dangerous duel yet..."

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Violet Witch**

**DARK/ Spellcaster/Effect /Level 4/ATK: 1100/DEF: 1200**

**Description: When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard, add 1 Plant-Type monster with 1500 or less DEF from your Deck to your hand.**

**(2) Phoenixian Seed**

**FIRE/ Plant/Effect /Level 2/ATK: 800/DEF: 0**

**Description: You can send this face-up card to the Graveyard to Special Summon 1 "Phoenixian Cluster Amaryllis" from your hand.**

**(3) Phoenixian Clister Amaryllis**

**FIRE/ Plant/Effect /Level 8/ATK: 2200/DEF: 0**

**Description: This card cannot be Special Summoned except with its own effect or with "Phoenixian Seed". If this card attacks, it is destroyed after damage calculation. If this card you control is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, inflict 800 damage to your opponent. During your End Phase, you can remove from play 1 Plant-Type monster from your Graveyard to Special Summon this card from your Graveyard in Defense Position.**

**(4) Twilight Rose Knight  
**

**DARK/ Warrior/Effect /Level 3/ATK: 1000/DEF: 1000**

**Description: Your opponent cannot select a Plant-Type monster as an attack target. When this card is Normal Summoned, you can Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower Plant-Type monster from your hand.**

**(5) Agent of Hatred**

**DARK/ Plant/Effect /Level 2/ATK: 0/DEF: 0**

**Description: Once per turn, during your opponent's Battle Phase, you can gain Life Points equal to the Battle Damage you took from 1 attack.**

**(6) Mad Profiler**

**DARK/ Fiend/Effect /Level 8/ATK: 2600/DEF: 1600**

**Description: This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card cannot be Special Summoned except by Tributing 3 monsters. You can send 1 card from your hand to the Graveyard to remove 1 card of the same type (Monster, Spell or Trap) on the field from play.

* * *

**

**Sonya: "Now, let's look what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: It's tume for the the final match in the Fortune Cup Semi-Finals! Can David's magicians hold their own against Divine's psychics? Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator!"**

**Please Review.**


	41. Mind over Magic

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."

_"What an amazing duel! Ladies and Gentlemen, after the Black Rose picked apart Commander Koda, we're gonna conclude today's portion of the Fortune Cup with one more Wild Card match, facing David Carten against the deadly psychic Divine!"_

In the competitors' lounge, the magician duelist himself overheard the MC while looking over his cards. His time is here.

"I've been waiting all day for this match... I supposed we should get this over with, right?" David took one last glance at this two favorite cards, Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl, before adding them to his deck, "Alright, guys. It's do-or-die time!"

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 38: Mind over Magic

* * *

**

In a dark, confined room, the psychic Divine was also reviewing his cards, until the mysterious Sayer entered...

"I would like to talk to about your last duel, Divine..."

"Another time, Sayer," he dis-countered Sayer, "I barely still have time until my match starts."

"That's just it," Sayer snapped, "I didn't mind your usual routine, but when you decided to pull that stunt at the end of the battle, you've jeopardized the reputation of our order. And the world doesn't even know about us yet."

"C'mon. lighten up. If it bothers you so much, then that's it. I'll hold back my powers this time..."

"That's what I want to hear," Sayer said acidly, leaving the area.

With Sayer gone, Divine was once again free to be lost in thought, 'At least I could go after Jason next after this...'

* * *

**Later...**

"Hi-ya again, KaibaDome! Sonya Harpe, back again to referee the final match of the semi-finals!" the crowds cheered, "Entering the arena is Dave 'the magician' Carten! And challenging him is mysterious and totally lethal Divine!" both players arrived and ready to duel.

* * *

Ken: "Last time he was let loose on the field, that maniac went all out on Katherine and almost killed her!"

Gabriella: "Let's just pray that nothing like that happens today."

Nathan: "Let's not count on that..."

* * *

"So you're my next opponent, huh?" Divine converted his disk into duel-mode, "This shouldn't take long, then."

"My dark magicians are gonna make you eat those words," David countered, as he activated a KaibaCorp mass-produced duel-disk.

"Game on!"

**David: 4000**

**Divine: 4000**

"I'm feeling a little generous today, so why don't you go first?"

"Fine. I draw," David drew his sixth card, giving off a menacing stare, 'This Divine character can boost up his life points to power up his monsters. So I'll just have to drain out his life points before that even happens.' "Before I call out the dazzling Dark Magician Girl, I have to lower her level a few notches. So by paying 1000 points, my Star Blast spell lowers my level-6 monster by 2!"

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 4000**

"So now, she's easier to summon!" afterward, the adorable magician's apprentice appeared (ATK: 2000/Lv: 4), "And she won't be alone, because now I'm activating the spell Sage's Stone! Because with Dark Magician Girl on my field, she can cast the power of the Sage's Stone to call upon his master! Dark Magician, take center stage!" a pink, crystalline stone materialized above the female magician. She lift up her scepter and released a bolt of pink lightning at the stone. It then glowed brightly and took humanoid form. The famous Dark Magician appeared and landed beside his apprentice (ATK: 2500).

Sonya: _"The famous magician and his apprentice! Brings lots of memories back from Battle City and the KC Grand Championship!"_

"Now I place 2 cards face-down and call it a turn!" two reverse cards appeared in front of David, "It your move!"

"Why, thank you." Divine started his turn, "I activate the spell card Burden of the Mighty, which means both your monsters lose ATK points for each of their respective levels. Your monsters aren't so mighty as the ones the King of Games used any more, are they?"

Dark Magician: (ATK: 1800)

Dark Magician Girl: (ATK: 1400)

"Now for my psychics; I summon Mind Master to the field in DEF position," the golden armored brain-droid appeared and placed its metal hands forward, its purple gems releasing a bright-green aura around him and his master, "You see, with this card on my field, monsters with 2000 or less ATK can't attack. Unless, of course, psychic-type monsters. Next up, is the spell Double Summon, and use its effect to summon (1) Grapple Blocker(1200/2000), which I'll also summon in DEF mode!" a yellow-and-purple humanoid appeared, with suction cups on the back of its hands and arms. Four tentacles connect from its back, its suction cups also glowing, "Next comes grappler's special ability!" the new monster extended its tentacles and bind them all over the taller magician.

"Dark Magician!" David cried.

"You see, since Grapple Blocker is successfully summoned on the field, you Dark Magician is unable to attack or be sacrificed," after his monsters' effects, Divine played another spell onto the field, "Next I play the Psychic Invigoration. So during the end-phase, if my monsters don't attack, then my life points increase by 200 for the total level of monsters on my field," finally, he placed a reverse card on the field, "Now I place a card face-down and let my Psychic Invigoration spell take effect, awarding me with 1400 points."

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 5400**

"It's my turn now," David started his turn, "And I summon (4) Breaker, the Magical Warrior(1600/1000) to the field in ATK mode," a warrior in red, golden-trimmed armor appeared, wielding a sword, and a crimson shield with a blue gem embedded in the middle (ATK: 1200), "Since he successfully normal-summoned to the field, he's awarded one spell-counter, and 300 ATK points," the warrior's gem glowed on its shield (SC: 1) (ATK: 1500), "But he won't have it around for long, because I activate Breakers special ability, to remove his spell-counter to destroy one spell or teap card on the field. So Breaker, get rid of Divine's Burden of the Mighty!" Breaker's gem glowed brighter and started to spark blue electricity, "Go, Spell Break!" the magical warrior's shield fired the blue bolt through Divine's continuous-spell, shattering it to pixels.

"So much that spell," Divine mumbled.

Dark Magician: (ATK: 2500)

Dark Magician Girl: (ATK: 2000)

Breaker, the Magical Warrior: (ATK: 1600)

"You got that right. And it's only gonna get worst, because now I activate my face-down," one of David's reverse cards opened, revealing Skilled Light Magician and Skilled Dark Magician firing bolts of magical energies, "Next, I activate the Magician's Archive spell card, to add another spell from my deck, straight into my hand," a card stuck from David's ancient disk as he obtained it, "Next comes the effect of my (5D's)Arcana Blast trap card, blasting you with 400 points of damage each time I play a normal-spell card," the magician duelist's trap released a bolt of black lightning which striked Divine in the chest.

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 5000**

"And as you well know, I'm not stopping there, because I'm activating the very spell I added to my hand: the spell card Thousand Knives!" after David activated the spell, numerous knives appeared around the bounded Dark Magician, "You see, while Dark Magician's on the field, I can destroy a monster that's on your side of the field! And whom better than that annoying Grapple Blocker!"

"Before it's too late, I activate the Psychic Rejuvenation trap, giving me 1000 life points for each psychic on my field!" Divine's reverse card created a green aura that surrounded him.

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 7000**

The daggers flew at the grappling psychic at light-speed and skewered the monsters, destroying it. And with Grapple Blocker gone, the binds that trapped the Dark Magician are now gone,"And since I activated another spell card, the effect of Arcana Blast. And that means another 400 points is dealt to you as damage!" another bolt shocked Divine.

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 6600**

"Now with Dark Magician 'unbounded', he's now free to attack; Dark Magic Attack, that is!" the black-fitted magician raised an open hand, and created a negative-energy barrier that collided with Mind Master, "Dark Magician girl, its your turn! Dark Burning Attack!" the Dark Magician Girl fired a sphere of dark magic at the psychic duelist.

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 4600**

"Giving up yet, or do you want more? Cause' Breaker's gonna give you another one with Magical Slash!" Breaker leap forward and swung his sword at Divine.

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 3000**

"Consider that payback for fondling my magician!" David growled, concluding his turn.

"That's the only _good_ thing that will happen to him today," Divine started his turn, "I activate the spell Pot of Greed!" he drew twice then, "Next, I summon Krebons in ATK mode!" the harlequin psychic appeared (ATK: 1200), "And next, I activate the equip-spell Telekinetic Charging Cell onto Krebons!" two circular objects appeared beside the tuner. Then several loops of energy intersect each other at the objects, "So long as he's equipped inside this cell, I don't have to pay life-points to activate its special ability. That should end my turn for now."

"On to me then," David started his turn, "I activate Spellbook inside the Pot!" both players drew three times. But David's third card caught his attention, 'This card...'

_**Flashback...**_

_The setting changes to nighttime, a couple of days before the Fortune Cup. He received a message from Lazar that Goodwin wants to see him. Already he senses something strange in the atmosphere. Rex Goodwin was one of the most powerful men in the world. Why waste minutes talking to a normal citizen like him, he wondered. He never dropped his guard as he followed the vice-director through the corridors of the P.S.M.B headquarters. After several floors, they made it to the door to Goodwin's office._

_Lazar pressed a button on a speaker next to it, "Director, I have Mr. Carten with me as you requested."_

_"Very well," the door opened and Lazar and David entered the room to fine Rex Goodwin himself behind a desk, "Lazar, would you mind leaving us for a moment?"_

_"As you wish, sir," Lazar bowed and exited the room._

_With the vice-director gone, Rex and David are now free to conversation, "Hello, Mr. Carten. I assume you were wondering why you were called here tonight?"_

_"Skip the formalities, Goodwin." David replied bitterly, "Just tell me why you brought me here."_

_"But of course," Rex reached into a drawer and pulled out a manila folder, "What is in this folder is what I'm sure you are looking for, or rather, who..."_

_David took the folder and opened it. The contents inside shook his nerves to the core: it was a profile. The photo on it shows a bright-faced girl of about 17-years-old, according to the date the photo was taken. A pair of bright-pink blushes could be seen on her cheeks. Her eyes were sapphire-blue, and her blond hair was styled after David's duel-monster magicians. He know completely well who it it, "Mana..."_

_"Yes. Mana Copperfield. As you could read from the file I gave you, she was kidnapped under a year ago by a secret organization. Who they are and what their objective is is yet to be revealed."_

_"And you're telling me this just now, because..."_

_"I want to assist you to find this girl. But I would want something in return."_

_"As if there wasn't a catch to begin with," David stated sarcastically._

_"KaibaCorp will be holding a tournament known as the Fortune Cup. And you will be participating in its Wild Card portion. There's no real prize for that event, but if you manage to advance and face a certain person, then I may help you find Ms. Copperfield at te end of the tournament," Goodwin then gave him a Fortune Cup invitation, and three duel-monster cards. When David turned over the cards, he couldn't believe what he was seeing..._

_**...end flashback.**_

'Goodwin said he'd help me find Mana if I helped him in this tournament,' David thought, 'And by the looks of this 'Divine' character, he must be the person he wants me to challenge. If that's the case, then this card should help me take him down-'

"Are you gonna just stand there all day? Cause' I'm getting real sleepy," Divine asked impatiently.

"Before I make another move, Arcana Blast dishes you with another 400 points."

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 2600**

"And now I activate this: the (5D's)Arcanus, the Magician Academy!" David's field-spell created a circle similar to the Spellbinding Circle, which surrounded the entire field, but maintained distance from both players. Then, several torched, stone pillars appeared and surrounded the duelists, "And with the power of this field-spell, school is now in session! Especially with Rapid-Fire Magician joining class!" the damage magician appeared, crossing its two burning scepters (ATK: 1600), "I place one card face-down, and then end my turn!"

"You better be ready to _get _schooled," Divine started his turn, "I summon another Grapple Blocker to replace the one your Dark Magician destroyed. So now he's got another set of tentacles to worry about!" the blocker's thick tendrils wrapped themselves around the magician's body yet again.

And David didn't like it at all, "You just made me and my magicians angry, Divine!"

* * *

Katherine: "Jeez, that David sure treats his Dark Magician like a real person, huh?"

Gabriella: "You have an even closer relationship with your nekos, Neko."

* * *

"I'll just play a face-down. It's your turn."

"Here we go!" David started his turn, "This is just what I need! I activate the Dimensionhole spell card!" a giant wormhole appeared over David, "Thanks to this, I can select one monster one my field, namely my Dark Magician, and remove it from play until my next turn!" the vacuum from the hole pulled the Dark Magician to it. For all the Grapple Blocker's strength, its tentacles could no longer hold its captive as the magician was sucked into the Dimensionhole, which then disappeared, "Now that my magician's safe once again, you get another 400 points of damage due to Arcana Blast's effect!"

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 2200**

"Rapid-Fire Magician also dishes out 400 life-points!" Rapid-Fire fired its scepters at Divine's life-points.

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 1800**

"And there's more Divine! Thanks to the Magical Academy field-spell, class is now in session! See, whenever I activate a normal-spell card, Arcanus' effect allows me to select one of my spellcaster on the field. And then that monster performs the following spell as its level required," the Dark Magician Girl began to glow a green aura, "And since Dark Magician Girl's level is 6, she destroys one of your spell or trap cards on the field. So say goodbye to you equip-spell!" the female magician fired a pink energy blast from her scepter, and obliterated the Telekinetic Charging Cell, "And with that out of the way, my magicians are now free to attack with no problem!" Breaker charged with his sword in hand, but not before a group of robed women created a barrier to block the warrior's attack.

"Sorry, Magic-Man, but my Waboku trap prevents any of my monsters from being destroyed by battle or take any battle-damage."

"I end my turn," David said with a disappointing glare.

"It's my move, then," Divine started his turn, "I summon the (2) Psychic Commander(1400/800) tuner-monster!" the monster in question wore green army clothing, grey shoulder-pads and gloves, and a black visor with red eyes. He also rode a silver flying saucer with a cannon mounted on it (ATK: 1400), "And now I tune him with my Grapple Blocker to synchro-summon Psychic Lifetrancer!" the commander transformed into three synchro gates and surrounded Grapple Blocker. Its four stars created a column of light and brought forth the raven-haired psychic in their place (ATK: 2400), "Now I activate lifetrancer's special ability: by discarding 1 psychic from my graveyard and removing it from play, I gain 1200 more life point. It's a special ability I'd like to call, Telekinetic Solar!" after pocketing Krebons, Psychic Lifetrancer created provisional sun that drizzled golden stardust over Divine.

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 3000**

"And that doesn't stop there! Now I tune Krebons with Psychic Lifetrancer for one more synchro-summon!" Krebon's and Psychic Lifetrancer's frames dissapeared and replaced them into two synchro-gates and seven stars. Then the nine total requirements surrounded their master Divine as he chanted:

"Stars of verlism, unite as one! Unlock the gate of cyberspace to uncover the arms, and array me with the rods of destruction! Synchro-Summon!"

Then Divine was enveloped in another column of light.

* * *

Ken: "Oh man! If he's summoning what I think he's summoning, the Dave's about to enter a world of hurt!"

Gabriella: "Oh, no!"

Rico: "He can't!"

Nathan: "He just did!"

* * *

"From the depths of the cyber world," the light finally dimmed, as the psychic duelist was armed to the teeth once again in his glowing white armor, brandishing his twin blasters, "...enter, the Hyper Psychic Blaster (ATK: 3000)."

Sonya: _"Uh oh! That monster caused a whole lot of trouble for our cutie-pie Katherine! But will thing go differently for David and his masterful magicians?"_

"Let's say we let your Rapid-Fire Magician, shall we?" Divine's data blaster hummed and charged up for an attack.

"Not so fast! I activate my face-down, Ready for Intercepting, and switch Rapid-Fire to DEF mode!" the magician disappeared, and was replaced with a sideways reverse card.

"Doesn't matter!" Divine quickly switched to his cyber-piercer, "Because Hyper Psychic Blaster can use his Cyber Piercer ability to inflict piercing damage! Here goes another magician!" his blaster then fired off a blast of psychic-green energy at the now-revealed Rapid-Fire Magician.

"Not gonna happen, Divine! I activate my face-down!" David's reverse card is revealed as a quick-play spell, showing five friends holding their hands ontop of each other. Those persons were well known as Duke Devlin, Tristian Talor, Tea Gardner, Joey Wheeler, and most importantly, Yugi Moto.

"Wait! That card-"

"Is the quick-play spell known as Unity! Like the card, it binds the powers of all monsters on my field and give their DEF power to one of my monsters," the three magicians crossed their staffs together and transferred their power to the one Rapid-Fire Magician.

Rapid-Fire Magician: (DEF: 3900)

Divine's blasters were no match for the magicians' combined power as it attack was deflected by a massive barrier surrounding the monsters.

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 2100**

"That was a lucky shot," Hyper-Divine groaned and concluded his turn.

"It's my turn now," David drew, "And that means my Dark Magician comes back from the Dimensionhole," the taller magician appeared out of the rift, "I'll just lay down a face-down and call it a turn for now."

"Alright, then," Hyper-Divine started his turn, and the card he drew made Divine smirk under his helmet, "Your luck just ran out! Because now I activate the Decentralization Prism spell!" and on command, Divine's armor glowed and four copies slide from behind. Soon David was faced with five Hyper Psychic Blasters, "Decentralization Prism gives me as many Refraction Tokens as there are monsters on your field. And since you currently have 4 magicians, I get 3 more Hyper Psychic Blasters! Now to put these extra arms to good use!" all ten blasters pointed directly towards David and his magicians, and fired.

"I activate my face-down: the Arcana Barrier trap card!" the Dark Magician raised his staff in the air, being crossed by the other magician's wands and swords. Their combined magic created another barrier, this one being more dense as it completely took all five of the blasters' attack.

"Oh, what now?"

"Due to the effect of Arcana Barrier, so long as there's a level-5 or higher 'Magician' monster on my field, this trap prevents any enemy attack, so long as their ATK power is equal to or lower than the total level of spellcasters x200. And since their total level is 2100, the Arcana Barrier protects me from monsters with even 4200 ATK. Now my magicians are safer than ever! I guess I have a few more tricks up my sleeve."

"Tricks are for kids," Hyper-Divine growled as he ended his turn with a face-down.

"I guess that means it's my move again," David started his turn, "I activate the spell card (5D's) Magician's Charity!" the magician duelist played a normal-spell which shows the Dark Magician glowing a bright violet aura, behind a pair of face-down cards, "Whenever there's a level-6 or higher 'Magician' card on my field, I can select that monster to draw 1 card for every other spellcaster I have! And since I currently hold 3 monsters along with Dark Magician Girl, I get to draw 3 new cards from my deck," the Dark Magician Girl brightened up his face an she delightfully waved her wand over her head and launched a bolt of pink energy at David's duel-disk. That was the signal for him to draw three cards, "Aside from not being able to attack on the turn Magician's Charity is used, you get hit with another 800 points of damage; 400 from Arcana Blast, and and 400 from Rapid-Fire Magician!" the Rapid-Fire gained an extra magical boost from the Arcana Blast trap card before launching another attack on Hyper-Divine.

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 1300**

"And next, I activate the effect of my Magical Academy field-spell, and by selecting Dark Magician, he can return 1 spell card from my graveyard and return it to my hand!" Dark Magician raised its scepter and fired it at David's disk. Then David took one of the spells out of his graveyard slot, "I return Magician's Charity from the graveyard, and use it one more time!" David drew three more times, "And that means another 800 points gets taken out!"

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 500**

Sonya: _"David's spells are picking apart Divine's life-points like feathers off a dove! One more spell card will end the psychic's reign early!"

* * *

_

Ken: "The lady-with-the-mic is right! All David needs is one more normal-spell to finish off the rest of Divine's life-points!"

* * *

"One more normal-spell should do it!" David called, "I activate Magical Blast, which deals 200 points of damage for each spellcaster on my field!" the magicians once again combined their magic into one more massive attack.

Katherine: "N-E-K-O, this is gonna win it!"

"Not so fast, Carten! I activate Psychic Rejuvenation!" Divine's reverse card gave him another 1000 for each Hyper-Divine on the field.

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 4500**

After that, the Magical Blast connected...

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 3700**

As well as the Rapid-Fire/Arcana combo.

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 2900**

"You saved yourself this time, Divine. But it won't last the next," David concluded his turn with three reverse cards.

"I guess that means I got next," Hyper-Divine started his turn, "And I activate Pot of Avarice!" Divine returned five of his psychics from his grave to his deck, then drew two cards, "I got the card I need to break through your barrier! I activate the spell, Psychokinesis!" as Divine played the spell, his Data Blaster began to glow, "For the low, low cost of 1000 points of damage, one of your cards are destroyed! So good riddance to your Arcana Barrier! Psychokinetic Deletion!" Hyper-Divine fired a blast of pitch-dark energy to destroy David's protection trap. He also received a shock from the attack as a result.

**David: 3000**

**Divine: 2900**

"Now with your little barrier out of the way, it's time for an all-out-psychic-assault, starting with your Dark Magician Girl!" Hyper-Divine charged his Data Blaster again, blasting the Dark Magician's apprentice to oblivion.

"Dark Magician Girl!" David cringed from the shock created by Divine's attack.

**David: 2000**

**Divine: 2900**

"Don't worry, she won't be in the graveyard alone; not with Dark Magician keeping her company!" Hyper-Divine No. 2 obliterated the Dark Magician as well.

"Dark Magician! No!"

**David: 1500**

**Divine: 1900**

"Let's send some more on their way, shall we?" No. 3 blaster the Rapid-Fire Magician to smithereens.

**David: 100**

**Divine: 1900**

All that was left now was Breaker, the Magical Warrior, "100 life points, one more monster to destroy, and one more attack to destroy it with," Divine smirked under his cyclopian helmet, "Looks like this show has come to a pause! Hyper Psychic Blaster, end this now!" blaster No. 4 fired his twin blasters to wipe out the warrior until...

"This show's not over until the last spell's been cast! I activate my face-down, Defense Draw! So I don't take any damage this turn; and I can draw a card!" after the barrier retaliated the attack, David drew from his deck.

"I end my turn for now," Divine said irritated.

"It's my move, then!" David started his turn, "Next, I activate one of my face-downs, Pitch-Black Power Stone! And with it in play, I get 3 spell-counters," a long, gold pedestal appeared, holding a black stone with three glowing triangles floating around inside (SPC: 3), "Next, I activate the Miracle Restoring trap card! By removing 2 spell counters, I can bring Dark Magician back from the graveyard in ATK mode!" the famous magician returned from the grave, "And to even up the playing field, I activate the spell card Yu-Jo Friendship!" David played a normal-spell which showed Yugi Moto and Joey Wheeler shaking hands, "When the Unity spell card is in my graveyard, both our life-points become half the total amount of our current score! You're so good at altering your own life-points; you do the math!"

**David: 1000**

**Divine: 1000**

"And since it's a normal-spell, Arcana Blast take another shock out of your life-points!"

"I don't think so! I discard (3) Lifeforce Harmonizer(800/400) from my hand to cancel and destroy your trap!" a small blob of ectoplasm appeared and took the hit for its master. It then forced itself black along with the blast to destroy both it and the monster.

"At least I can activate Arcanus' effect. Now I return Magical Blast to my hand!" David removed the spell from his graveyard, "And I still have a few more spells to go; like the Magic Formula I equip to Dark Magician!" the magician was given an ancient tome. As he read from the contents, his ATK power increased by 700 points.

Dark Magician: (ATK: 3200)

"Now I attack Hyper Psychic Blaster prime with Dark Magic Attack!" Dark Magician unleashed another wave of dark magic and destroyed the psychic blaster, shattering Divine's armor into pixels as a result.

**David: 1000**

**Divine: 800

* * *

**

Rico: "He did it!"

Ken: "He made Divine armor-out!"

* * *

"Hmph, impressive," Divine smirked, "Not everyone had the guts to pierce my armor. Now you'll really have the privilege to be taken out by yours truely!"

"I'd like to see you keep your word after I activate the Dark Door spell card, since you'll now have to attack with one monster per turn! Next, I summon the (5) Skilled Dark Magician(1900/1700) in DEF position!" another magician appeared, wearing a black cloak and armor (DEF: 1700), "Then I place one card face-down and end my turn!" a reverse card appeared in front of David.

"It's my move!" Divine started his turn, "I activate the spell card Soul Taker! Now your magician is destroyed, and in return, you get 1000 life points!" but as soon as the spell was played, it was back fired and destroyed, "What give?"

"It's because of the face-down I set last turn!" David revealed the set trap card with an Egyptian pharaoh in the artwork, "The trap known as Judgment of the Pharaoh. By paying half of my life-points, when Unity and Yu-Jo Friendship are both in my graveyard, all card effects you use are canceled this turn!"

Divine growled, "I switch my tokens to DEF and end my turn."

"It's my turn, then," David started his turn, "I summon (6) Skilled White Magician(1700/1900) in DEF mode," another magician appeared. It looks like the first skilled magician, but with a white cloak and armor (DEF: 1900), "Next, I activate Magical Blast, to deal 600 points of damage to your life-points!

**David: 1000**

**Divine: 200**

"Now it's time to attack! Dark Magician, attack one of the tokens," the magician's dark magic destroyed one of the Prism Tokens, "That should end my turn for now."

Sonya: _"This is it folks! If David could hold out one more turn, he can use Magical Blast's effect to add it to his hand during his draw-phase! Then he can take care of the rest of Divine's life points! We might as well be looking at the next Harry Houdini in the making!"_

"I'm not gonna lose to some wannabe magician... No way!" Divine fiercely drew a card from his deck. But what was strange was the dangerous power generation from him.

Even Sayer noticed it, 'So Divine was just playing around after all.'

"Your little show has just come to a close! I'm sick of your little magic tricks! So I'll just respond with a trick of my own! I activate the Dark Phoenix Force spell card!" Divine's spell corrupted his aura with a torrent of black flames, "When Dark Phoenix Force is activated, I get to select one monster on my field, and then sacrifice the rest of them to grant the monster their attack points!" the fire has scorched the two monsters Divine had left, forming the wings of the dark fire-bird around him.

Prism Token: (ATK: 6000)

"Your chances of winning this match has officially gone up in flames! It's time to end this _NOW!_" Divine forcefully burried his flaming palms into the ground, erupting a giant wave of fire directly at his opponent. David bravely stood tall against the dark inferno, all before the big-

_**KABOOOMM!**_

The collision cause a giant explosion. When the smoked cleared, David was found scorched face-down on the field.

**David: 0**

**Divine: 200**

Sonya: _"Incredible! In an amazing turn of events, Divine turned the tables with a stunning finish! He will be moving on to face Jason Hutchin in the Wild Card finals!"

* * *

_

"Oh, what a shame," Lazar chuckled.

"Indeed," Goodwin added, "...I was really hoping David would make it to D-5 Epsilon, for Ms. Copperfield's sake."

* * *

With nothing else to do or say, Divine deactivated his disk and left David on the ground.

David regained consciousness a moment after Divine left. The first thing he realized besides the minor burns was that his deck was scattered all across the field. His heart felt heavy at the fact that he may never again see his beloved because of this. And when he spotted the cards of the Dark Magician and his apprentice lying right in front of his sight, he felt even more regret...

"I can't believe I couldn't save you... Mana... can you ever forgive me?" the magician duelist then blacked out again...

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Grapple Blocker**

**EARTH/ Psychic/Effect /Level 4/ATK: 1200/DEF: 2000**

**Description: When this card is Normal Summoned, you can select 1 monster your opponent controls. The selected monster cannot attack or be Tributed, while this card remains face-up on the field. During each of your End Phases, pay 500 Life Points or destroy this card.**

**(2) Psychic Commander**

**EARTH/ Psychic/Effect /Level 3/ATK: 1400/DEF: 800**

**Description: When a Psychic-Type monster you control battles, during the Damage Step you can pay Life Points in multiples of 100 (max. 500) to have the monster it's battling lose that much ATK and DEF, until the End Phase.**

**(3) Lifeforce Harmonizer**

**WIND/ Psychic/Effect /Level 2/ATK: 800/DEF: 400**

**Description: When your opponent activates a card's effect that inflicts damage, you can discard this card to negate its activation and destroy it.**

**(4) Breaker, the Magical Warrior**

**DARK/ Spellcaster/Effect /Level 4/ATK: 1600/DEF: 1000**

**Description: When this card is Normal Summoned, place 1 Spell Counter on it (max. 1). This card gains 300 ATK for each Spell Counter on it. You can remove 1 Spell Counter from this card to destroy 1 Spell or Trap Card on the field.**

**(5) Skilled Dark Magician**

**DARK/ Spellcaster/Effect /Level 4/ATK: 1900/DEF: 1700**

**Description: Each time a Spell Card is activated, place 1 Spell Counter on this card (max. 3). You can Tribute this card with 3 Spell Counters on it to Special Summon 1 "Dark Magician" from your hand, Deck, or Graveyard.**

**(6) Skilled White Magician**

**LIGHT/ Spellcaster/Effect /Level 4/ATK: 1700/DEF: 1900**

**Description: Each time a Spell Card is activated, place 1 Spell Counter on this card (max. 3). You can Tribute this card with 3 Spell Counters on it to Special Summon 1 "Buster Blader" from your hand, Deck, or Graveyard.

* * *

**

**Ken: Now, let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh: 5D's!: Things sure got a little hectic today, don'tcha think? Who knows what kind of craziness Jason could get into; especially since he'll be facing Divine tomorrow. Also, we'll have a very special guest from Anime Master ZERO's YuGiOh! GNext! Don't miss our next chapter of Stardust Accelerator!"**

**Please Review.**


	42. Fighting Fire with PhoenixFire

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."

Guest: property of Anime Master ZERO, Comic Master Alpha, and Strawberry Bunny.

* * *

Miles from the metropolitan streets of New Domino City, we now draw our attention to a lone cyclist riding across a bare highway. The miniature radio music buzzed through her headphones as she pedaled.

_I've got the need for speed (the need for speed)_

_I've got the will to win._

_Success is guaranteed._

_So let the games begin. _

"I just wished I had made it in time for that Fortune Cup to begin!" the cyclist cursed, "Sheesh, I should've never decided to take the long route!"

_You can lock me up - you can tie me down._

_Throw away the key._

_Still breakin' outta this one horse town._

_Yeah, you can't catch me. _

"I mean, what was I thinking? I got Ken's message! I said I'd be cheering him on from back home, only to find out the cable just went out! I hope I can catch him at the finals."

_Revving up – driving hard._

_I'll put my faith in the cards. _

"It's been a year since the academy, last I saw him. He may know how to get around the cards, but he's all thumbs when it comes to the exams. But that didn't keep him from graduation, did it?"

_Got the need for speed (the need for speed)._

_I've got the will to win._

_Success is guaranteed._

_So let the games begin. _

"And here I am, across shallow waters, over brisked mountains, and through extending highways! And this time, my venturing will take me the grand utopia of New Domino City! What more could a girl want!"

_Nothing's gonna stop me now (stop me now)._

_Once I take the lead._

_Got to feed my need for speed...  
_

Her attention was then drawn towards a sign she passed, 'New Domino City Limits: 10 mins. by car.'

"Looks like I finally made it to the big city! Definitely makes the whole trip worth it!" with boosting determination, she increased the speed of her pedaling.

_My need for speed!

* * *

_

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 39: Fighting Fire with Phoenix Fire

* * *

**

We now return to our regularly-scheduled story, with Jason and his company at the basketball court outside the Youth Center, thinking back to the last match from the semi-finals.

"First Neko and now David the Magician?" Kenichi exclaimed, "What was Goodwin thinking, bringing a psycho like Divine to the Cup?"

"All the invitations were all made at random," Gabriella assured, "Whoever they were given to at the time they were sent could be anyone's guess."

"But what about me and Yusei? We got our invitations personally," Jason said.

"But do you really think Goodwin's up to something?"

"If he had to take hostages to get me to enter some competition, then why not? Anyway, what is it you wanted to show us, Ken?"

"Oh! I was gonna tell you this morning before the semi-finals! I got a message from one of my friends! She's so cool, y'all have to meet him!"

"Really? Who is she-"

"HEADS UP!" a new voice caused Jason, Ken, Gabriella and Katherine to look up and duck as the saw a blurry shadow race over their heads. They heard the sound of clacking, plastic wheels as they skied across the asphalt court. They turned to see before them a woman about 19-20 in age, stepping off her red-and-yellow skateboard.

She wore a red tank-top with dark-blue jeans. The girl strapped off her helmet, revealing a long crimson ponytail streaked with golden highlights. She kicked the edge of her board, sending it flying upward and catching it in mid-air, "So, is this a private party, or can yours truly join?"

They were still too stunned by the sudden entrance to say anything. Kenichi, on the other hand, stood up and brushed himself off, "Yo, guys, I want you to meet Nellie Larzarus. Nell, these are my co., Jason, Gabe, and Neko!" he waved over to his friends.

"Well, it's great to meet you guys," Nellie walked over and gave Jason and Gabriella and handshake. She gave Katherine a hug instead, "By the way, Ken, I haven't heard your name lately while the Fortune Cup was broadcasting on the radio. It must've backlashed pretty badly, didn't you."

"Lucky guess. Y'know, I still got the scars to prove it."

"That's too bad... So, what's been going on in the meantime?"

"Oh! You gotta come in and sit for this one! Things have gotten real crazy these past few days!"

* * *

**Later, inside the Youth Center...**

"Whoa! Whoa. Let me get this straight here," Nellie took in everything she was told when they got inside. She pointed to Ken, "You've been handed by Dark Magician in your very public turbo-duel," then to Katherine, "She almost got put down by a guy with crazy psychic powers," and then to Jason, "And the only reason he was invited because of some crazy glowing tattoo... I'm sorry, but that sounds more like a bad sci-fi flick, if you ask me."

"I told you it wasn't a good idea to tell anyone else, Ken," Gabriella whispered.

"C'mon, Nell. Everything we told you is the honest-to-god truth!" Ken argued, "You can see for yourself, but I'm sure you can wait tomorrow at the finals, right?"

"Of all the times you steered me wrong, tomorrow could be the perfect time. I came here because want to see you at the tournament. But I guess the finals is just as good as everything else I missed."

"Oh, it is! Y'know, it's been a long time since we've dueled, isn't it?"

"Well, I did came here for a match, and that's just what I'm gonna do!" Nellie reached into the knapsack she was carrying. She pulled out a duel disk and smiled, "So, you ready or what?" the disk in question has a deck-holder in the frame of a metallic-gold falcon head, with an orange gem in the middle. At the right side of the head, its card panel attached was shaped as a golden bird's wing, with a flaming crimson edge.

Kenichi countered with a smile of his own and flashed his own disk, "Do you have to ask?"

"A duel? This should be exciting!" Kat chirped.

"C'mon, let's go back out and watch," Gabriella said as the others followed Ken and Nellie.

* * *

Once outside, both players activated their duel-disks and converted them to duel-mode. Nellie's disk operated a bit differently: the falcon-wing popped out and circulated around to the left side, like all other panels on a duel-disk should be, and extended to reveal all five monster-card zone. Nellie then drew her first five cards from her shuffled deck.

"Game on!"

"I thought you'd never ask!"

**Ken: 4000**

**Nellie: 4000**

"First-turn honors go to you, Nell!"

"Heh, you're too kind!" Nellie made the first move, "First I summon Marauding Captain in ATK mode!" a sandy-blond man in rusty armor appeared on the field (ATK: 1200), "And thanks to his special ability, I can summon a monster form my hand that's up to level-4. And I got just the one in mind. C'mon out, Hand of Nephthys!" an Egyptian priestess with a falcon-shaped headdress appeared next to the captain.

"But with Hand of Nephthys on the field..."

"That's right! I get to activate her special ability! By tossing her from the field along with another monster, I can summon the Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys!" from the two monsters absorbed into a black warphole, came a torrent of blaze as a glimmer of gold made its way through. The sacred phoenix erupted from the vortex and onto the field. But there's something different about that very monster that isolates it from the one he plays. Her golden, metallic figure is more sleek and lustrous that Ken could see the reflection of everything caught in its hide. The flames, usually red-and-orange, were sunny-gold, and glowed as bright as the sun itself (ATK: 2400).

"Hey! What gives with that phoenix?" Ken protested.

"Oh, don't worry. She's still the same-old Nephthy," then Nellie sets three reverse card, "Finally I place 3 cards face-down! It's your move!"

"Alright, then!" Kenichi started his turn, "I special-summon from my hand not one, but two Gilasaurus'!" Ken summon a pair of ravenous raptors to the field (ATK: 1400x2), "And then I release them both to summon my own Sacred Phoenix!" the two dinos were consumed by flames and took the form of the same gold phoenix, except this one in in its regular form (ATK: 2400), "Nephthys can be re-summon from the graveyard due to a card effect. But let's see how it does in battle!" Ken's Nephthys inhaled and spewed a spray of flames from its beak.

"Sorry, but I activate my face-down, Raigeki Break!" Nellie pointed to one of her flipped reverses, "By ditching a card from my hand, a card on the field will have to take a one-way trip to the graveyard! Sorry, Nephthys, but you're gonna have to set this one out for now," after sending a card into her graveyard, Nellie's Nephthys evaporated into small flickers of fire before she took a direct hit from Ken's attack.

**Ken: 4000**

**Nellie: 1600**

"And now I activate my other face-down, Call of the Haunted! I'll use this to resurrect a monster form my graveyard, namely my (1) Starboy(550/500), in ATK position!" black smoke seeped from the ground as a red, one-eyed star with colored ribbons for appendages appeared (ATK: 1050), "Since you attacked this turn, I won't have to worry about this little guy getting in trouble for a while!"

"Then I'll have to throw down these 2 face-downs and call it a turn!" two reverse cards appeared in front of Ken.

"Then it's my move!" Nellie started her turn, 'Ken knew that Nephthys special ability destroys all spell and trap cards as soon as she summoned. So why go through the trouble on setting a couple of face-downs at all?' the redhead thought, then smiled, 'Hmm... I guess I'll find out soon enough.' "I activate Nephthys' special ability! During my standby-phase, she come back from the grave!" from the ashes of burning cinders, the radiant phoenix revived. But Starboy's special ability caused her flames to lessen (ATK: 2000), "But she won't be staying for long! I activate my Chain Destruction trap card! When a monster with 2000 or less ATK is summoned onto the field, that monster is destroyed, as well as those with the same name from my hand and deck!" a cursed, rusty chain popped up from the ground and pierced itself through Nephthys' chest, as well through Nellie's duel-disk.

"But she still burns away all the spells and traps!" Ken stated, "And when your Call of the Haunted goes, so does your Starboy!" the aqua creature disappeared, "And don't forget, Since the 2 face-downs removed from my field are both Statue of the Wicked, 2 Wicked Tokens show up on my field!" a pair of hideous golden worms appeared over a cloud of fog (DEF: 1000), "And with no monsters on your field, you left yourself wide open for another direct attack!"

"Not if I summon (2) Spirit Reaper(300/200) to guard my life-points!" a shriveled zombie in a purple robe shielded itself behind its scythe (DEF: 200), "That's it for this turn!"

"On to me, now!" Ken started his turn, "And I activate the spell Natural Tune! Thanks to this, I can select 1 normal-monster on my field and make it into a tuner!"

"And since tokens are fundamentally treated as normal monsters..." the redhead quickly realized.

"This wicked wonder's gonna tune into another!" one of the Wicked Tokens transformed into four synchro-gates and surrounded the second one, which changed into four stars. All the while, Kenichi chanted:

From the ashes a new flame ignites, behold the power that burns hotter than the sun! Synchro-

Summon! Burn, (3) Wildfire Dragon!"

The blaze-armored red dragon hovered over his master (ATK: 2900).

"Nice one!" Nellie noted, "I never seen anyone at the academy use that monster!"

"That's great, because you won't forget it, thanks to his special ability! That could allow me to remove a fire-attribute monster in my graveyard from play for Wildfire Dragon to burn you with 1000 points of damage. Or I can remove 2 monsters and deal 1500 points instead!"

"Well, lucky for me there aren't any in your graveyard."

"Yeah, too bad. So I'll just throw down a face-down and leave it at that."

"It's my turn!" Nellie drew her next card, "And don't forget. During my standby-phase, Nephthys comes back from the graveyard. But the thing is, she's not alone!" the lustrous phoenix returned from the graves, along with two more Sacred Phoenixes!

"But how's that possible? Those two were discarded from your deck!"

"Remember my Chain Destruction trap I played a while ago?" the redhead reminded, "The monsters may have been removed from my deck, but they still count as being destroyed altogether. It's the same thing."

* * *

Katherine: "Meow-wow! I had no idea you can do that with stronger monsters!"

Jason: "That's just the trick: She can't without a little help. That's why she summoned the Starboy awhile back. That monster can raise the ATK of Water monsters by 500 points, as well as weaken Fire monsters by 400."

Katherine: "But I still don't get it, Nya?"

Gabriella: "Chain Destruction destroys monsters with ATK powers up to 2000. So Nellie needed Starboy's ability to weaken her phoenix's 2400 ATK points to 2000. So Chain Destruction can destroy it in its weakened stake..."

Jason: "So that Nellie could activate all 3 of her phoenix's special abilities during their standby-phase, giving Ken 3 Sacred Phoenixes to worry about!"

* * *

When the Nephthys' second effect activated, the phoenix spread out its wings and released another sea of flames spread out over the court, destroying Ken's reverse card.

"That was a pretty sweet move, Nell. But their special ability took out another one of my face-downs, which happens to be Wasteland Tornado!" the trap created a said twister of dust and wind via the card's destruction, "And when that card was destroyed while face-down on the field, one of your cards are destroyed! So say goodbye to your spirit reaper!" the tornado caught the zombie and ripped it apart limb from limb, "And on my next turn, your phoenixes are next!"

"In that case, I'll need a little help. So I activate Pot of Greed!" the redhead's spell allowed her to draw twice, "And now I equip the spell, Horn of the Unicorn onto Nephthys!" the phoenix's head now carried a glittering, glowing unicorn horn (ATK: 3100), "It's time to fight fire with phoenix-fire! Nephthys, attack Wildfire Dragon with Hallow-Horned Helix!" the Horn of the Unicorn released its divine energies and supressed its power around Nellie's phoenix. Nephthys then flew upward, leaving a trail of four streams of fire from her wings. She made a big somersault before quickly turning her entire body like a drill and fluxed herself right through the dragon.

**Ken: 3700**

**Nellie: 1600**

"Now for your other monster! Nephthys No. 2, attack!" the second phoenix fired a stream of fire from its beak while Ken's monster countered with the same attack. The collision ended the battle in a draw, destroying both birds, "And with no monsters on your field, Nephthys No. 3, attack Ken's life-points directly!" the third monster fired a second flare which stroked Kenichi head on.

**Ken: 1400**

**Nellie: 1600**

"That should do for now," Nellie concluded her turn.

"Then it's my turn!" Ken drew, "I guess I'll just end my turn with a face-down card."

"The I guess it's my turn," Nellie drew her card, "I summon (3) Flame Ruler(1500/1600) in ATK mode!" a dark-skinned man with blue hair and a blazing robe appeared, "Now attack him directly!" the monster launched a pair of fireballs from his hands. Unfortunately, they were blocked from their impended targets by a group of intersecting green chains of energy, which surrounded the phoenix duelist and her monsters.

"Sorry, but my Gravity Bind trap card prevents any level-4 or higher monsters from attacking!" Ken revealed his reverse card.

"Then I'm done for now."

"It's my move, then!" Ken started his turn, drew his card, and smirked "Perfect! By paying 800 life-points, I activate Premature Burial, and bring Wildfire Dragon back from the graveyard!" an eruption of fire released the red armored dragon from the earth, he Premature Seal burning on its chest (ATK: 2900).

**Ken: 600**

**Nellie: 1600**

"Remember when I told you about his special ability? Well, since I'm removing my Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys from my graveyard from play, Wildfire dishes you with 1000 points of damage! Go, Reign of Terror!" the dragon's wings burst into flames, then it released them in a single flap towards the phoenix duelist.

**Ken: 600**

**Nellie: 600**

"And that ends my turn there!"

"It's my turn," Nellie drew, "Y'know, you weren't kidding about that dragon's power! But how far do you think it'll take you? Let's ask the spell, Thunder Crash!" clouds suddenly came by and shadowed over the field. Lightning suddenly crashed and incinerated the three phoenixes, "With the power of Thunder Crash, all monsters on my field are destroyed! Then I get 300 points per card!" small particles of light drizzled over Nellie. Then the clouds scattered and disappeared.

**Ken: 600**

**Nellie: 1500**

"And since Horn of the Unicorn was sacked with Nephthys, I can add it to the top of my deck!" the redhead removed the card from her graveyard slot and placed it ontop of her other cards, "That ends my turn."

"It's my turn," Ken started his turn, "I'll just end my turn with a face-down."

"Then it's my turn!" Nelle drew, "And you know what that means! Welcome back, Nephthys and friends!" the three phoenixes returned once again.

"Gotcha! I activate my Torrential Tribute trap card!" as soon as the card was played, a giant stream of seawater erupted and rushed through the entire field, washing away all monsters on the field.

"Then I'll just call it a turn for now."

"Then it's my turn!" Ken drew, "I'll just end my turn with a face-down."

Nellie the started her turn, "My phoenixes come back from the graveyard during my standby-phase," the blazing trio returned, "Then her special ability activates!"

"Before its too late, I activate the trap card, Waboku!" Ken revealed his reverse card before it got incinerate along with his Gravity Bind, "So, you got anything else up your sleeve?"

"You'll have to ask my face-down," a reverse card appeared. "It's your move."

"Thanks!" Kenichi started his turn, then he made a big mental grin, "I summon (4) Reflect Bounder(1700/1000) in ATK mode!" a red-caped machine jointed with multiple mirrors appeared, "That would end my turn!" 'Let's see how she gets out of this!'

* * *

Katherine: "Gabe, what's a Reflect Bounder?"

Gabriella: "It's a machine-type monster that has a special ability to deal an opposing monster's ATK points as damage to the opponents."

Jason: "So in this case, if Nephthys tries to attack Reflect Bounder, then she'll be taking herself out, too."

* * *

"Not bad, Ken," Nellie started her turn and drew her card, "But not bad isn't good enough. See, I don't always have to attack to win my battles."

"That does not sound good," Ken grimaced.

"I'll just take a note from your book and activate this: the trap, Ceasefire!" the redhead revealed her final trap card, "Thanks to this, I take every monsters there is on the field, and you take 500 points of damage for each one on the field! So to put it simply, game over!" Nellie raised her arm towards her lustrous phoenix as the monster absorbed the energies from the others and unleashed a stream of super-concentrated flame, straight at Kenichi. The duel ended in a single fiery explosion.

**Ken: 0**

**Nellie: 1500

* * *

**

Jason: "I don't believe it!"

Gabriella: "Kenichi lost, _again._"

Katherine: "That's too bad, mrrow."

* * *

The phoenix duelist walked over to her defeated opponent, "That was a good duel, Ken," she reached out to give him a hand. Unfortunately, he was hesitant.

"If I had held out long enough, I would've won. Boy, was I wrong..." but as quick as his heart sank, his face brightened, "Haha! I had a great time though! Thanks for the duel!" he grabbed Nellie's hand and got up off his knees, "And that was a great move you did with those phoenixes, too!"

Nellie smiled brightly and responded, "What can I say? I do what I can."

**Moments later...**

It was sundown when Kenichi, along with Gabriella, Jason and Katherine, gathered together to bid farewell to Nellie Lazarus.

"Well, it's about time I find a room to stay for the night," the redhead insisted, "Tomorrow after the finals it's back on the road for me."

"But where would you go from here?" Jason asked.

"Who knows..." Nellie finished buckling her in-line skates and strapped on her helmet, "Rather that there's no place like home, I'll go wherever my own two feet take me," she swiped the skates on the court as she begins to leave.

"Nellie, wait!"

Nellie skied to a halt, "Yeah, Ken?"

"I wanna know something, about that phoenix..."

"Let me leave you with a little tip: have the same faith in your cards as I did Nephthys, and it will do the same thing for you."

"..." Ken was speechless. Is that how her phoenix really came to be?

"Later!" Nellie left into the sunset, sweeping her skates as she goes. Pretty soon, she was gone.

"Well, that was an interesting day," Gabriella confirmed.

"And it's got to be more interesting when once back at the KaibaDome tomorrow for the final match," Jason added, 'But the question is, am I ready for it?"

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Star Boy**

**WATER/ Aqua/Effect /Level 2/ATK: 550/DEF: 500**

**Description: As long as this card remains face-up on the field, increase the ATK of all WATER monsters by 500 points and decrease the ATK of all FIRE monsters by 400 points.**

**(2) Spirit Reaper**

**DARK/ Zombie/Effect /Level 3/ATK: 300/DEF: 00**

**Description: This card cannot be destroyed by battle. Destroy this card when it is targeted by the effect of a Spell, Trap, or Effect Monster. If this card successfully attacks directly, your opponent randomly discards 1 card.**

**(3) Flame Ruler**

**FIRE/ Pyro/Effect /Level 4/ATK: 1500/DEF: 1600**

**Description: This card is treated as 2 Tributes for the Tribute Summon of a FIRE monster**

**(4) Reflect Bounder**

**LIGHT/ Machine/Effect /Level 4/ATK: 1700/DEF: 1000**

**Description: When this face-up Attack Position monster is attacked by a monster on your opponent's side of the field, before damage calculation, this card inflicts damage to your opponent's Life Points equal to the ATK of the attacking monster. Then, after damage calculation, this card is destroyed.

* * *

**

**Jason: "Now, let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh: 5D's!: It's time for the final battle! One more victory will bring me one step closer to the answers I'm looking for! But are my cards ready to take on Divine's psychic onslaught? Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator!"**

**Please Review.**


	43. Wild Card: Part 1

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."

(A/N): This chapter contains content and language disturbing to some readers. Reader's discretion is advised.

* * *

The sun shone early in the next morning. Jason Hutchins was in the guest room, leaning on the ceiling-to-floor window of the Tops' apartment. He gripped his jean-jacket in his hand as he glared across the horizon towards the KaibaDome building. That was the main topic on his mind, for today is the Fortune Cup Finals.

He sighed, 'Today's the big day. I'm so excited I hardly slept a wink last night. I know I should be excited about today, but, how can I when there are people like Divine and Akiza putting people in danger? Dueling is supposed to be fun, right?'

"Morning, Jason!"

The Satellite looked over to see Katherine and Gabriella enter the room. Katherine wore a pink dress, with a wand in hand. She also wore black cat ears and a tail with a pair of golden bells tied in a red ribbon. But they weren't alone. Ken Matsuda was also present.

"Oh. morning, girls. How you doing, Ken? What's up?"

"Aren't you ready, yet?" Gabriella asked, "We're gonna be late for the finals."

"And if you're late, then you'll be kicked out of the tournament!" Ken grinned.

Jason smiled. He threw on his jacket and lead his friends out, "Let's do it to it!"

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 40: Wild Card**

**Part 1: Psychic Cat-tastropthe

* * *

**

The scene now changes elsewhere in New Domino City, at a skyscraper none taller than the Tops' residential district. Akiza Izinski stood on a balcony, overlooking the city. She also knew today is her last battle at the KaibaDome. But she wasn't too happy about it. After what happened during the last two days, how can she. The moment she showed the world her abilities, they became scared of her. They treated her as she really was a witch. Akiza was sure it will be worse today if she were to go out today without her mask again. Whenever she wore it, she wouldn't have to have worry about the people who would be against her because while she wore it, she was the Black Rose instead of Akiza Izinski. As the Black Rose, she was feared by all, her deck and powers. But that does not mean she liked it. She wanted to be treated as an equal player rather than a monster. The only ones who understood her pain was the people who took her in when she needed help the most: the Arcadia Movement. When she entered into their family, she loved them as they were her own, especially Sayer. She loved him like a father, and he loved her like a daughter. And it wasn't long after that when another entered the family...

"Morning, Big-Sis!"

Akiza felt a sudden clasp surrounding her waist. She looked back to see Rico Burst holding him in a tight hug, "Oh, good morning, Rico," she greeted motherly.

"So are you ready to go, Sis?"

Akiza took a deep breath, "Sure," she held Rico's hand and walked to the door.

A few feet away, they stopped at Divine's room, where they saw Divine fiddling with a window leading to his balcony.

"Good morning, Divine!" Rico greeted innocently, while he hid behind his big sister.

"Don't 'good morning' me you little runt!" Divine barked, "I need to whoop your little ass for breaking my window last week!" he grabbed a sledgehammer and swung it onto the shatter-proof window. Its force was rebounded by the pliable material, "Now try punting a football through this!"

"That wasn't me! I wouldn't wanna come into your smelly old room anyway!" the boy stuck his tongue out.

"You better not! Sayer ought'a need to put you little bad-ass to school anyway, rather than keep you home-schooling."

"Shut up, _Piko!_"

"WHAT?" though Divine may not understood Esperanto, all he knew that it was an insult. He was prepared to strangle Rico's throat when Rico himself scurried away. Divine stopped at the door and watched Rico disappear around the corner, "You'd better run..."

* * *

**Later...**

Jason and his friends were on their way to the KaibaDome by means of Gabriella's company van.

"So, I've been meaning to ask you, what brings you early this morning?" Gabriella asked Ken.

"Aw, man! I was trying to catch you guys before you left, and tell you what happened when you left!"

"What happened?" Katherine asked upbeat.

"Well... You know Xiki Nomura snatch Hunter Pace's duel-runner, right?"

_**Flashback...**_

_Kenichi was on his way home from the Youth Center. He lived with his parents in the Daimon residence. Now, Daimon wasn't really a bad place to live. They were able to avoid a few hardened criminals, at least. When he was waking pass the street-duel square, he wasn't surprised to see the Twilight Mistress Xiki Nomura, along with her two cronies, Terry and Hilary, hanging out there. Then he saw a car driving up to the area, and was surprised who got out. It was the single-time Turbo-Dueling Champion Hunter Pace. Ken was wondering what was going on, so he decided to listen in and hide behind the corner._

_"My dad's nuts, y'know," Pace chuckled nervously, "See, he wanted me to ask for my runner back and, well-"_

_"What runner?" Nomura snapped._

_"Uh, the one you used the other day. The Skull Chopper. The one you took- er, borrowed, remember?"_

_"Oh, that one... So you wanted it back, is that right?"_

_"If it's okay with you, I mean..."_

_"Well, all you have to do is ask," Xiki smiled, "C'mon. It's right over this way," she lead Hunter towards the near-end of the alley where the stairs are._

_"I mean, you don't really have to give it back. It's all yours if you want it."_

_"That's nice to hear that, because..." Xiki stopped in her tracks. Hunter had no idea what was going on, until it was too late, that is._

_WHAMM!_

_It all came too fast then. The Twilight Mistress swung around and rammed her fist square in Pace's face, sending him flying from one end of the square to the other. He landed hard on the concrete, with stars invading his eyesight._

_"THAT'S MY BIKE, PUNK!"_

_Though a small audience, Terry and Hilary couldn't resist laughing and giggling. The jaunty, pigtailed goth skipped over and stood over the blacked-out biker, "YOU GOT KNOCKED THE F**K-OUT!" she cackled._

_An older man, whom Ken could identified as Pace's father (A/N: Hunter Pace lost his home when he lost to Jack Atlas, so he had no way of supporting himself. And who better to mooch off of than his parents?), quickly came out of his car and rushed to his son's aid from any more of Nomura's harm._

_"OH, YOU WANT SOME OF THIS TOO, OLD MAN? HUH?"_

_"NO!" even a person wise-of-age like Mr. Pace knew better than to argue with a thug like Nomura. So he decided to drag Hunter awake and get on out of here, "Get off yo' ass and get in this car, boy! I don't know, why you down here messin' with these people! Hurry up!"_

_**...end flashback.**_

"I mean, the got in that car and scurried on out of there!" it was a wonder how Ken's short story saved a whole lot of waiting when they got to the KaibaDome buildng. Soon, they stopped at an intersection.

"We're gonna have to cheer you from the balcony, Jason," Ken said, "Only the finalists are allowed in the competitors' lounge."

"Well, good luck," Gabriella said, "I'm so proud of you, Jason."

"Jason!" the others looked to the corner and saw Rico approaching them, pulling Nathan with him.

"Hey, Rico," Jason greeted, "What's up, Rico?"

"I wanted to see you before the tournament starts. I want to talk to you about something..."

**Meanwhile...**

"Welcome back, ladies and gentlemen, to the KaibaDome, where the Fortune Cup finals will finally begin!" the MC announced, "Today we'll find out who will take on Jack Atlas in the final event! But first, we made a few changes while you were gone! First, we're gonna start the Wild Card a little differently today. Instead of going second, the finals will start with a Wild Card match! Second, we'll be add a very special surprise! As we all know, a Wild Card is made of contestants who weren't qualified by normal play. But now those who are left now have a reason for being here! Bacause whoever wins the finals will gain the athority to face off against the Grand-Misstress of Turbo-Dueling, not to mention the CEO of KaibaCorp's Japan's wing, Isis Kaiba! Not to mention a 100,000 cash prize to the one who can best her in a turbo-duel!" Isis' face monitored on the giant sphere. Wonder shadowed the entire audience.

"That's Isis Kaiba? I thought it was Seto!"

"She's a duelist?"

"Why haven't I heard of her?"

* * *

Seems you've been spending so much time behind stacks of paper they already forgotten who you are, Ms. Kaiba?" Lazar giggled.

"Shut up, clown!"

* * *

"Now they know what their looking forward to in the final event! So, without further ado, allow me to welcome you to the Fortune Cup Finals!" the crowds cheered.

* * *

**Later...  
**

In the competitor's lounge, we see Jason Hutchins in front of one of the tables, looking over his deck. All the while, his mind wandered in thought...

_**Flashback...**_

_"I WANNA GO HOME! I DON'T WANNA DO THIS ANYMORE! LEAVE ME ALONE! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!"_

_"Cry all you want, but it won't help any better. Let this loss today give you a change in perception. Say goodbye!" instantly, all charges went off as all erupted laser zeroed in on Katherine, and created a massive explosion unlike anyone in the audience had ever see. It sent shockwaves even more powerful that the powers of the Black Rose could create..._

_"Your chances of winning this match has officially gone up in flames! It's time to end this NOW!" Divine forcefully burried his flaming palms into the ground, erupting a giant wave of fire directly at his opponent. David bravely stood tall against the dark inferno, all before the big-_

_KABOOOMM!_

_The collision cause a giant explosion. When the smoked cleared, David was found scorched face-down on the field._

_**...end flashback.

* * *

**_

'Something tells me that Divine didn't intend to come here just for the tournament. He must be trying to prove something, otherwise, he wouldn't have hurt Katherine and David like he did. Maybe if I could just talk to him through this duel, I could try to change his mind...' Jason rustled through his cards and looked at the Colossal Fighter card, 'Also, If I could win this battle, all I'd have to do is to beat Isis and then maybe Goodwin will give me the answers I've been looking for...'

"Jason..."

Jason turned to see Katherine standing beside him. She doesn't look too well, from the looks of it, "Hey, what's wrong, Kat?"

The little girl was hesitant to speak. Tears began to leak from her eyes. She rushed over and clutched around Jason's sides, her face buried against Jason's chest, "I don't want you to go, Jason," Katherine sobbed, "I don't want him hurting you again. I want you to stay with Gabe and me. Please don't leave us, Jason."

It surprised the Satellite that Kat could turn from cheerful to fearful in a matter of moments. But he could never stand to see a little girl cry. So he wrapped his arms around he to comfort her, "It's okay, Kat. Nothing bad's gonna happen to me. I'm gonna make sure that Divine won't hurt you, or David, or anyone else when I'm through with him."

The little Neko-Girl looked up and rested her chin on Jason's chest. Her jade eyes were sparkling like true gems, "You promise?"

Jason nodded.

Katherine pulled herself off of Jason and wiped the salty tears from her eyes, slowly returning to her peppy old self, "Then go get 'im! You got a duel to win!"

"Right," Jason gathered his deck and walked out of the room, but not before looking back at Katherine as if possibly the last time. When he left the room, he was surprised to see David Carten leaning next to the doorway, "Hey, you're..."

"We need to talk..."

* * *

**Later...**

"Good Morning once again, New Domino City, and welcome back to the Fortune Cup!" the secondary MC, Sonya Harpe, announced, "Let's move on to the Wild Card Finals, shall we? In this corner, the Satellite who made it this far in the tournament, Jason Hutchins!" Jason arrived to the field, "And challenging his is the Telepathic Tyrant, Divine!" when the psychic arrived, some of the audience began to leave in fear of his abilities.

"Hey there, Satellite," he greeted Jason, "So, you about ready to get your butt blasted across the KaibeDome and back?"

"Don't get your hopes up. At least I didn't have to hurt innocent people to get through the Fortune Cup," Jason brandished his golden duel-disk, "And I don't need psychic powers to beat you, Divine."

"Hmph, have it your way," Divine equipped to his own disk as well.

"Let the final match begin! Players, activate your duel-disks!"

Both duelists activated their disks and drew five cards each.

"GAME ON!"

**Jason: 4000**

**Divine: 4000**

"The first move's mine, Divine!" Jason started his first turn, "And to start things off, I summon a monster in DEF mode! Next, I set two cards face-down!" three reverse cards appeared: one as a monster, and two others reverse card, "It's your move."

"Of course it is," Divine started his turn, "I summon (2) Destructotron(1600/400) to the field in ATK mode," a green flash conjured a horrible-looking cyborg walking on four metal arachnid legs. A television screen on its head shows a deranged face cackling, "And by paying 1000 of my life points, I can destroy one spell or trap on your field!" the green gem on Destructotron's chest began to glow and then fired a bolt of telekinetic energy to pierce through Jason's reverse card, which was revealed to be Sakuretsu Armor.

**Jason: 4000**

**Divine: 3000**

"Now, Destructotron! Let's see what this Satellite's hiding!" the cyborg thrusted its sharp talons into Jason's set monster, and pulled out an adorable little kitten with a white ribbon tied around its neck. The kitty stood no chance as the monster crushed her into pixels. Most of the audience were mortified at seeing such a cute thing at danger's mercy.

"The monster you destroyed is known as (1) Angel's Kitty(0/500)! And when it's been flipped over, I can add 1 level-4 or lower Neko monster from my deck and add it to my hand! And I choose Neko-Maid!" Jason showed Divine the card before adding it to the others in his hand.

Divine snickered, "So you decided to use Ms. Neko-Mimi's cards to beat me, right? Are you stupid, or what?"

Katherine was in her usual spot in the stands, "You don't have to take that, Jason!" she called, "Teach that dork a lesson!"

"That's not all Angel's Kitty can do. See, when it's destroyed, I'm allowed to draw 1 card," Jason drew once.

"I supposed I'll play this face-down for now," the psychic concluded his turn with a reverse card, "And during the end-phase, if Destructotron is the only psychic on the field, he's automatically destroyed," the psychic disappeared into pixels.

"Then it's my turn!" Jason drew, "I activate my face-down Limit Reverse trap and re-summon Angel's Kitty from the graveyard in ATK position!" the white kitten reappeared, mewing cutely (ATK: 0), "Next, I summon the tuner-monster, Neko-Maid!" the anthropomorphic damsel appeared next to the cat (ATK: 1400), "Next, she tunes with Angel's Kitty to synchro-summon Neko-Polefighter!" the maid transformed into four synchro-gates and surrounded the cat. Jason chanted:

"Fearless hearts join to defend their acquaintances! Become the warrior to enforce the battlefield! Synchro-Summon! Neko Polefighter, Accelerate!"

The pole-swinging tigress appeared (ATK: 2200), "And since you don't have any monsters on your field, Neko-Polefighter is free to attack you directly! Now attack!" the polefighter advanced forward and whacked Divine in the face with her staff. The psychic barely flinched.

**Jason: 4000 (31)**

**Divine: 800

* * *

**

Rico: "Jason dealt some major damage! This will be over in no time!"

Nathan: "Don't count you eggs just yet. Divine couldn't have left his field open for no reason."

* * *

"You're already playing right into my hands," the psychic smirked, "Because of your careless attack, I can activate my Damage Condenser trap card! Since I took damage, I can send 1 card to the graveyard to summon a monster from my deck with ATK points equal to or lower than the amount of damage I took!" after discarding from his hand a portal appeared from the ground and brought up to the field. That monster was a hulking warrior with green-and-black-plated armor. Several large cable-cords were attached to it, most of them at the back of its head, "Say hello to my level-6 (3) Armored Axon Kicker(2200/1800)!"

"I play the equip-spell (5D's)Neko-Steel Claws and equip them to Polefighter!" the tigress was given a pair of green, striped mittens which were armed with razor-sharp claws at the beastly fingertips, "Now when the equipped monster attacks a monster in DEF mode, the difference it dealt to you as battle damage. Also, Neko-Polefighter can't be destroyed in battle while equipped to a spell. I end my turn."

"It's my turn, then," Divine started his turn, "I summon the Psychic Commander tuner-monster!" the saucer-mounted psychic tuner appeared (ATK: 1400).

* * *

Nathan: "That 9 levels total!"

Ken: "Here it comes!"

Rico: "Not again!"

Gabriella: "Oh, dear!"

Katherine: "Be careful!"

* * *

"Now I tune my Psychic Commander with Armored Axon Kicker to synchro-summon the most powerful in my arsenal!" the Commander rose up and separated into three gates, and floated down around Divine and his monster. The stars started to spin around him as he chanted:

"Stars of verlism, unite as one! Unlock the gate of cyberspace to uncover the arms, and array me with the rods of destruction! Synchro-Summon! "From the depths of the cyber world! Enter, Hyper Psychic Blaster!"

A large torrent of light erupted around the psychic. When it dimmed, Divine was now in his Psychic Blaster armor (ATK: 3000).

Sonya: _"Divine in once again armed to the teeth in his Hyper Psychic Blaster armor! What's Jason to do now?"_

"There's nothing Jason can do now! Especially when I activate Double Summon, and use it to bring out Psychic Snail to the field in ATK mode!" the said monster appeared on the field beside Hyper-Divine, "And now I activate Dian Keto and get back a few life points you took from me earlier."

**Jason: 4000 (31)**

**Divine: 1800**

"Next comes Psychic Snail's special ability: by paying 800 of my life-points, one of my other monsters can attack twice!"

**Jason: 4000 (31)**

**Divine: 1000**

"No way!" Jason exclaimed.

"Way!" Divine charged both of his barrels and fired off at Neko-Polefighter, but she was able to fend off, "Your monster may have survived my attack, but you still take the damage!"

Jason winched from the after-effects of Divine's power.

**Jason: 3200 (31)**

**Divine: 1000**

"Round 2!" Divine launched another attack. Just like last time, the Polefighter held her ground while Jason was dealt another dose of damage from whatever got past the monster.

**Jason: 2400 (31)**

**Divine: 1000**

The psychic smiled under his helmet, "That position you're in now quite suits you. In fact, that's quite where your kind belong: on your knees!"

"Are you done yet, or what?" Jason snapped.

"Eager for me to end it? Well, don't think It'll be as quick as I'd try. I plan on spending this entire duel neutering those little rats you throw on the field."

"I won't let you do that!" Jason staggered back on his feet and started his turn, "It's my move! I summon Neko-Cleric in DEF mode!" the feline-prioress knelt to the field with her rosary in front of her, "Since I already have a Neko monster on my field, she can be special-summoned from my hand. Next I activate the spell Neko Penalty! And that activates Neko-Cleric's special ability! Each tome I activate a spell or a trap, I get 300 more life points!" the cleric raised her golden rosary and surrounded Jason in a gold aura.

**Jason: 2700 (30)**

**Divine: 1000**

"I also activate another spell: Playmate! And that gives me another 300 points from Neko-Cleric!"

**Jason: 3000 (30)**

**Divine: 1000**

"That's it for my turn, Divine."

"Then it's my turn," Divine drew, "I play Pot of Greed, and draw 2 cards from the top of my deck," the psychic drew a couple of cards, "I pay 800 more life-points from Psychic Snail and I can attack twice once again! Say goodbye to that furball-nurse of yours!" Hyper-Divine fired a dual-beam of energy and destroyed Neko-Cleric. Jason screamed as the leftover energy lashed against.

**Jason: 2000 (30)**

**Divine: 200**

"And thanks to my special ability, when I destroy a monster in DEF mode, I get the same amount of life-points equal to the amount of damage you took," Divine was surrounded by a green aura, replenishing his life-points.

**Jason: 2000 (30)**

**Divine: 1200**

"When a Neko monster is destroyed in battle, Neko Penalty's effect activates," Jason huffed, "So I send 3 cards from my deck to the graveyard, so you can't attack next round," he discarded the three cards from the deck, "And since the equip-spell Neko-Polestaff is sent there, I can add it to my hand," the Satellite slipped the card into his hand.

"I can still attack another time, in case you forgotten," Divine teased, "And this one's going to your Polefighter!" Hyper-Divine attacked the monster and Jason took the damage. The Satellite was knocked onto his butt due to its force.

**Jason: 1200 (27)**

**Divine: 1200**

"C'mon, why delay you defeat, Hutchins?" Divine laughed, "I mean, haven't I made it clear? A Satellite can't win against a superior in a duel! You should just save yourself the trouble and just go back to that dump while you can still walk!"

Jason was starting to have trouble breathing, "Oh, yeah? Is that what you would've told Katherine? And David?" he panted, his eyes hiding beneath his bangs, "I don't get it. What did they do that made you do what you did to them?"

"Hmph, that's a tough question," Divine mockingly wondered, "Perhaps I had a rough past. Maybe I'm only doing it to blow off a little steam... But as much time you spent around in that dump you call a home, if you have to ask, ...then you don't know a thing about reality, do you?"

"What are you trying to say, Divine?"

"What I'm trying to say, Hutchins, is that humanity is like a pyramid. And your kind is at the bottom. Each society has a role in life. And your role is supposed to serve us who live in the Satellite. And you try to worm your way out of your fate by running over here? ...New Domino and the Satellite should never mix. That's a just a fairy tail. Friendship, family, unity, kindness, that's for losers; like that little Neko-Girl, and that magician-wannabe David Carten, and you, if you don't give up on you little dreams!"

Jason picked himself up, "I think I just realized something: ...all you said just now was just nonsense."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. Just because you say it doesn't mean it's true. Noboby has to live a certain was because the feel like they have to. They have their own plans in mind. All they had to do is put their mind to it and anything's possible... And that's what I'm gonna do!"

"Good luck!" Divine concluded with a couple of reverse cards.

"It's my move!" Jason started his turn, 'I was feeling pretty ticked with Divine poking fun of me, that I forgot how Kat's deck really operates. I gotta keep on my toes!' "I equip the spell Neko-Polestaff onto Neko-Polefighter, increasing her ATK power by 800!"

Neko-Polefighter: (ATK: 3000)

"And now my polefighter's gonna attack your snail! Go!" the tigress slammed the Psychic Snail with her large staff.

**Jason: 1200 (26)**

**Divine: 100

* * *

**

Gabriella: "So far, so good!"

Ken: "Divine's in for it now!"

Katherine: "Meow-wow! There's nothing he can do now!"

Nathan: "I wouldn't count on that... This is twice he left himself open."

* * *

Divine couldn't help but chuckle, "You think I didn't want that to happen? In fact, I was counting on it! And now you're gonna pay for it! With my (5D's)Metaphysical Vengence trap card!" Divine waved his hand out and his face-down flipped open. The card shows the Psychic Lifetrancer ready to implode of psychic energy, "Since you destroyed a monster, I can select a psychic-type monster on my field and deal its ATK points as life-point damage! And guess who fits the bill..." Hyper Divine charged his weapons and crossed their energies together to form a single orb of psychokinetic power. And aimed at its impending target: Jason Hutchins! "It's game over!" the psychic released the bomb and sent it hurling at his opponent. Jason stood in dismay as it finally reached him...

_**BOOOOOOMM!"**_

That was what Katherine worried would happen. She warned Jason it would happen. And now it's too late...

"JASOOONN!"

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATEBASE**

**Angel's Kitty**

**Stats: [Beast/Effect] Level 1 ATK/0 DEF/500**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Description: FLIP: Add 1 Level 4 or lower "Angel" or "Neko" monster from your Deck to your hand. When destroyed, you can send 1 Spell/Trap card from your Deck to your Graveyard to draw 1 card.**

**(2) Destructotron**

**Stats: [Psychic/Effect] Level 1 ATK/1600 DEF/400**

**Attribute: EARTH**

**Description: During the End Phase, if this card is the only Psychic-Type monster you control, destroy it. You can pay 1000 Life Points to destroy 1 face-down Spell or Trap Card your opponent controls.**

**(3) Armored Axon Kicker  
**

**Stats: [Psychic/Effect] Level 6 ATK/2200 DEF/1800**

**Attribute: EARTH**

**Description: If you control a face-up Psychic-Type monster, you can Normal Summon this card without Tributing. If this card destroys a monster by battle, take damage equal to half the ATK of the destroyed monster, and then you can Special Summon 1 monster from your Graveyard with an ATK equal or lower than the damage you took.

* * *

**

**Sonya: "Now, let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh: 5D's!: Will Jason withstand Divine's psychic onslaugh! Will Sayer ever save Akiza from her own cursed power! Will Rico ever penetrate Divine's new shatter-proof windows! Will Hunter Pace ever regain his long-lost title of King-of-Turbo-Dueling! Will the public ever notice Isis Kaiba ever again! All that and more on the next Stardust Accelerator!"**

**Please Review.**


	44. Wild Card: Part 2

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."

(Digit) "This symbol indicates the card is created by 5-Digits. All rights go to the creator."

* * *

**Jason: Now, let's get up to speed with YuGiOh: 5D's!: Now I'm in the Wild Card Finals battling Divine. I managed to gap between our life-points with Kat's Neko deck, but Divine always had an alternative strategy! When he combined with his Hyper Psychic Blaster, I barely held on with Neko-Polefighter. When I managed to land an attack on one of his other cards, Divine activated Metaphysical Vengeance, which deals half of Psychic Blaster's ATK power as damage towards my life-points! Is there even a card here that can withstand that? Let's hop on, rev it up, and find out!"**

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 41: Wild Card**

**Part 2: The Power of Bonds

* * *

**A giant deafening explosion went off where Jason was was instantly hit with Divine's attack. The smoke prevented Divine from seeing Jason's current status, but he knew he can assume the worse, "And stay down," but as the smoke cleared, he could see that Jason escaped his doom with out a scratch, thanks to a force-field summoned around him and a small and furry beast in front of him, "What's with this furball in my way?"

"This 'furball' would be the monster (1) Hanewata(200/300)! And by sending this little guy from my hand to the graveyard, all effect damage becomes 0 for the turn!" Jason discarded the said monster from his hand. The shield depleted afterward.

* * *

Ken: "Whew! Talk a close call!"

Rico: "Jason made it! Somehow I just knew he would!"

Katherine: "He's the best! Nothing can stop him, nya!"

Gabriella: '(sigh/relieved) You saved Jason in time. Thank you, Hanewata...'

* * *

"That was just pure luck!" Divine scowled, "I'll blast away your life points nonetheless!"

"We'll see," Jason sets a card into his duel disk, "I place one card face-down and end my turn!"

"Back to me, then," Divine started his turn, "Since I can't attack because of your Neko Penalty spell, it's time I went onto a more supportive approach. So I activate the Psychic Invigoration spell!"

* * *

Rico: "That's the card he used to beat Kat and David!"

* * *

"But that's not the half of it! I activate the (5D's)Triangle Casting trap!" a reverse card flipped open, showing an ancient tome of three triangles connected to each other, "Since I activated a continuous-spell this turn, I can play 2 more copies straight from my deck!" two more Psychic Invigoration spells appeared, "And since this is now the end-phase of my turn, I can now increase my life-points equal to the combined psychic's level x200! But in case you're no good at math, 200 points, times 3 Psychic Invigoration spells, times a level-9 Hyper Psychic Blaster, all adds up to a grand total of 5400 life-points!" Divine was then surrounded by a green aura.

**Jason: 1200 (26)**

**Divine: 5500

* * *

**

Nathan: "His life points went back up. Jason's no longer in the lead...

* * *

"It's my move!" Jason started his turn, "And I'll start by activating the trap Needlebug Nest, removing 5 more cards from my deck!" when Jason discarded the five cards, light glowed in his graveyard slot, "And one of the cards I removed it a monster called (5D's)(2) Neko-Kid(700/700), which I now summon to the field due to Playmate's effect!" the monster in turn was another nekomimi, being a split-image of the one Katherine Cheshire. She wore a pink shirt and blue overalls. She also have black cat-ears and a tail with a pink ribbon tied on. The Neko-Girl knelt in DEF position, "And she's not alone, Divine! When Neko-Girl is successfully special-summoned, I can summon two more from my deck or my hand!" two more copies of the monster appeared (DEF: 700x2).

"One monster or three, it won't make a difference," Divine said smugly.

"Maybe once I activate the Neko-Gift spell, which lets me draw as many cards as there are Nekos on my field..." Jason drew four cards, "Next, I activate the spell card known as Neko Triangle Force!" the Satellite played a card showing threes Neko-Maids propped together around a glowing triangle-based digraph. The three Neko-Kids spread out around Jason's field until two were behind him and the third in front. All three of then glowed and each formed a small cylindrical barrier around themselves. Then those barriers connected to form a larger one around Jason and Neko-Polefighter, "Now, as long as this barrier's up, and when there are three of the same Neko monster in play, you can't attack for three turns!"

"A shield's not gonna get my life-points any lower, Hutchins."

"But you still won't use your synchro-monster. I'll call it a turn with a face-down."

"Alright, my move," Divine started his turn, "Like you said, I may not be able to attack, but I can still increase my life points. And with my Decentralization Prism spell, I'll be more than happy to!" Hyper-Divine's body multiplied into four separate Prism Tokens, due to there being four monsters on Jason's field at that time.

Prism Token: (ATK: 3000/DEF: 2500)x3

* * *

Ken: "Now it's quadruple the trouble!"

Rico: "And that means Divine can get even more life-points during each of his end-phases!"

* * *

"With three more level-9 psychics on my field, my life-replenishing abilities are now multiplied by 4! So now I get 21,600 life-points during the end of each turn! And now I pass over to you!" a large green flame erupted around the psychic duelist, replenishing his life points.

**Jason: 1200 (26)**

**Divine: 27100**

Neko Triangle Force: (2)

"Alright," Jason started his turn, "And I summon (3) Jinzo-Returner(600/1400) in ATK mode!" the monster Jason summoned appeared as a gruesome humanoid with yellow goggles. He wore a black jumpsuit and large, spiked, golden shoulder pads. His mouth was stitched closed so that he couldn't talk, "And thanks to his special ability, he can bypass your psychic army and attack you directly! Ge get 'im!" the Returner leap at high as he could, and fired off an bolt of psychic energy at Divine.

But the psychic didn't flinch, "Hmph. I have so many life point I didn't feel a thing. It's a complete waste, if you ask me."

**Jason: 1200 (25)**

**Divine: 26500

* * *

**

Rico: "I never want to admit it, but he's right! What was Jason thinking, summoning a weak monster like that?"

Nathan: "Don't let its small size fool you, Rico. What you're looking at is Jinzo rookie form. And if Jason could play his cards right, Jinzo-Returner will evolve into his Ultimate-Lord form."

Rico: "Ultimate-Lord...?"

* * *

"I place one card face-down and end my turn!" Jason concluded.

"On to me, then," Divine started his turn, "I activate the Synchro Boost equip-spell to give myself a power-boost! And as Psychic Blaster's power increases, so does the power of my Prism Tokens!" Hyper-Divine was invaded by a silver aura.

Hyper Psychic Blaster: (ATK: 3500/Lv: 10)

Prism Token: (ATK: 3500/Lv: 10)x4

"Next, I activate the Gold Sarcophagus spell card! Now I take a card from my deck and remove it from play! Then, on my 2nd standby-phase, that card is added to my hand! And the card I selected, is the Dark Phoenix Force spell card!" Divine showed his opponent the card before placing it inside a valid compartment in his data-blaster.

'I don't like where this is going,' Jason thought.

"And since this is the end-phase, I gain even more power from Psychic Invigoration! _24000_, to be precise!"

**Jason: 1200 (25)**

**Divine: 50500**

Neko Triangle Force: (1)

Sonya: _"Over 50,000 life points? I hate to admit it, but I don't think Jason Hutchins can win at this rate!"_

"You hear that, Hutchins?" Divine sneered, "As long as I have my front-line of monsters and spells, it's only a matter of time before I draw my most powerful spells, and then it's game over!"

"It's not over until the last card is played!" Jason replied.

"Brave words coming from someone as stupid as you."

"We'll see," Jason started his turn, "I'll just set my Returner to DEF mode and call it a turn for now," Jinzo-Returner knelt into DEF position (DEF: 1400).

"Nothing you can do, huh?" Divine started his turn, "Not that I'm surprised. I mean, you only one turn away from being burned to a crisp! I'll just skip my turn and let my Invigoration spells kick in!"

**Jason: 1200 (25)**

**Divine: 74500**

"And that means your little protection spell finally wears off!" Divine laughed as Jason's barrier disappeared.

Neko Triangle Force: (0)

Sonya: _"This it it! This next turn decides the fate of our Colossal Crusader!"_

"Alright! It's my, turn!" Jason drew his next card and looked at it; he smiled, 'Just what I needed! I activate the field-spell, Neko Paradise!" the moment Jason inserted the card into his field-slot, the entire arena changed scenery. What used to be a wide floor of concrete became a lush garden of beautiful flower of all kinds. The serenity of this meadow brightened the mood of Neko-Polefighter and the three Neko-Kids, "And with the power this field-spell, this deck is about to make a full comeback!"

Divine looked near his feet in curiosity, "How's a garden gonna help?"

"You'll find out! I activate the effect of Neko-Paradise! So by discarding a card from my deck, I can execute the following actions depending on what card I removed," Jason selected Neko-Warrior and sent it to the graveyard, "And since the card I removed is a monster card, the level of one monster on my field is altered by one! And I choose one of my Neko-Kids!"

Neko-Kid: (Lv: 3)

"Next up, I equip her with the Kitten's Tuning equip-spell!" the Neko-Kid was given a small metal flute and played it, "Now, as long as she's playing that flute, she's treated a a tuner-monster!"

* * *

Nathan: "Now he can synchro-summon monsters that are levels 5-through-8."

Ken: "If Jason's summoning what I think he's summoning, then Jason could win this!"

Katherine: "And who said he couldn't? Nya!"

* * *

"Now I tune Neko-Polefighter with Neko-Kid for a synchro-summon!" the tuner Neko-Kid transformed into three synchro-gates and surrounded the polefighter while Jason chanted:

"Abandoned scraps are a new alloy! Become the mechanized beast united into one! Synchro-Summon!"

* * *

Rico: "Here it comes!"

* * *

"Scrap Dragon, Accelerate!" the dragon-type synchro-monster made completely out of scrap-metal appeared (ATK: 2800).

"Scrap Dragon?" Divine exclaimed, "But that's Rico's card! How'd you get that?"

_**Flashback...**_

_"Jason!" the others looked to the corner and saw Rico approaching them, pulling Nathan with him._

_"Hey, Rico," Jason greeted, "What's up, Rico?"_

_"I wanted to see you before the tournament starts. I want to talk to you about something..." Rico finally met him at the intersection, "I know you're about to face Divine. And I want you to use this..." she rustled into his vest pocket and pulled out..._

_"Scrap Dragon? But I can't just take your card-"_

_"Are you kidding me? I just want you to borrow it to beat Divine!" Rico placed the card into Jason's hand, "And I want it back after the duel, okay?"_

_"Well, okay..."_

_"Hold on! I want to give you something as well!" Ken brought out a few cards from his pocket and gave them to Jason, "Use these to beat that Psycho-Punk!"_

_"I have something for you too, Jason..." Gabriella reached into her purse and pulled out a card._

_"Well, since I'm here, I might as well help out as well," Nathan gave Jason a few of his own cards._

_With his friends giving him some of their cards, Jason knew that he will have a better chance of winning with his friends with him, "This is incredible. With all my friends lending a hand..." he clutched the cards in his hands, "we can win this match!"_

_**...end flashback.**_

Divine smirked, "What a nice story. Practically warms my heart; or rather puke my guts out!"

Jason shrugged off the psychic's deriding, "Due to Scrap Dragon's special ability, I can select one card on either field and destroy them both! So I destroy my Jinzo-Returner, to obliterate you Hyper Psychic Blaster!" after the returner exploded into pixels, the dragon fired a stream of flames at Hyper-Divine. The fire shattered away his armor. The Hyper Psychic Blaster was finally destroyed, along with the three Prism Tokens.

Sonya: _"Finally! The Psychic Terror has left the KaibaDome! And since Divine's Prism Tokens were formed from the monster itself, they're removed from the field as well!"_

"And guess what! Whenever Jinzo-Returner in sent to the graveyard, I can special-summon (4) Jinzo(2400/1500) from my graveyard!" the returner was replaced with a larger verson complete with green armor (ATK: 2400), "And now I release Jinzo to special-summon it's ultimate form, (5) Jinzo-Lord(2600/1600)!" Jinzo has now evolved into its final phase: a full-armored psychic, with four metallic tendrils pertruding from his back (ATK: 2600), "But that's not all! I release one of my Neko-Kids to advance-summon the Dark Magician Girl!" the Dark Magician's aprentice appeared alongside Rico's and Nathan's monsters.

"That's Carten's card!" Divine deducted.

"That's right! And her ATK power increases for every Dark Magician in my graveyard! And right now, I have one!" a silhouette of the Dark Magician could be seen back-to-back behind his apprentice.

Dark Magician Girl: (ATK: 2300)

"You wouldn't dare!" Divine growled.

"Just watch me! Scrap-Dragon! Jinzo-Lord! Dark Magician Girl! Attack Divine directly! Go, Power of Friendship!" the dragon unleashed a stream of blue flames, followed by a large black energy orb created by Jinzo-Lord, along with the Dark Magician Girl's famous Dark Burning Attack. Divine braced everything thrown at him.

**Jason: 1200 (23)**

**Divine: 66800**

"It'll take a lot more than a bunch of throw-away cards to stop me!" Divine snarled.

"We'll see. I activate the spell Field Barrier, to protect Neko Paradise from being destroyed," Jason pointed at his opponent, "It's your move!"

"With pleasure!" Divine fiercely drew his next card, "And due to the effect of Gold Sarcophagus, Dark Phoenix Force is now added to my hand. And after setting 1 card face-down, I then activate Card of Demise!" Divine drew four cards from his deck, knowing he must discard them all in five turns, "Next I activate the spell Monster Reborn! So Hyper Psychic Blaster is back in action!" a bright light enveloped the psychic's body. Divine is now back in his Psychic-Blaster armor, "Now I activate Lightning Vortex, to destroy all monsters on your field!" after discarding one card from his hand, an invasion of lightning bolts descended and crashed over Jason's army of monsters, "And finally, I activate Heavy Storm, to destroy what little hope you have!" a giant tornado raged and blew away all of Jason's spells and traps. Fortunately, the field-spell was safe thanks to Field Barrier's sacrifice.

"No way..." but unbeknown to even Divine, Jason activated one of his reverse-cards before the storm hit.

"So much of your 'Power of Friendship'! Without any of those weakling-monsters to hide behind, you're fair game!" Divine charged both blasters for a direct attack. All the gathered energy then escaped in a stream of telekinetic energy.

"Before you destroyed my cards with Heavy Storm, I activated the Enchanted Javelin trap card! This increases my life-points by the attacking monster's ATK points!" Jason was awarded a long spear, creating a barrier against Hyper-Divine's attack.

**Jason: 4200 (23)**

**Divine: 66800**

He was barely holding on as he was pushed back further and further. But it wasn't long before the barrier cracked and then shattered along with the javelin. Jason was consumed by the assault and knocked back, sliding to the edge of the arena, many rips and shreds freshly made across his clothing.

* * *

Kat: "C'mon! You gotta wake up, Jason!"

* * *

Jason fought off the pain and slowly got himself on his feet. Unfortunately, due to his injuries, he could only limp.

**Jason: 1200 (23)**

**Divine: 66800**

"I think that's enough suffering, for now," Divine concluded his turn with a face-down.

Jason laid a hand on his duel-disk, 'I have to draw a monster strong enough to take out that Psychic Blaster of his, or he's gonna blast away the rest of my life-points!' "It's my... turn!" Jason swiftly drew his next card. To say the least, he was relieved of doubt, "Divine, that Hyper Psychic Blaster isn't going to stay on the field! And the card I just drew is gonna make sure of that! I summon the Chibi Neko-Maid tuner-monster in ATK mode!" in a flash of light, the super-deformed, adorable little Nekomimi made her entrance on the field (ATK: 400).

Divine gasped mockingly, "Oh, it's the attack of the Super-Deformed-3-Foot-Furball..." the Neko-Maid became angry as shown from her red and puffy cheeks, "Oh! It looks so ferocious! I think it wants to rush over and claw my eyes out!" Divine doubled over and laughed. Unfortunately, no one else was able to get the joke, as the entire stadium went so quiet he could actually hear a cricket chirping, "Sheesh, tough crowd..."

"Don't mistake the Chibi Neko-Maid for a joke when she's and important piece of my next combo. Show him what I mean, Chibi!" the tuner obeyed as she readied herself to strike-

"I don't think so!" Hyper-Divine quickly drew out his Data-Blaster and blasted the other monster to smithereens, "Hmph, so much for your great combo."

"Wait for it..." it was moments after when the smoke cleared by a forceful gale. What Divine was faced with then made him gasp: The Chibi Neko-Maid survived the attack! But that wasn't the half of it. Grown from the tuner's back were a pair of bright-glowing angel wings, three times her size!"

What's going on?" Divine demanded, "How did that hairball survive my Data-Blaster? I got 3000 ATK points! I'm stronger than that pipsqueak!"

"That's the point: you're not!" a single trap card appeared beside Jason, showing a shadow of a woman with giant wings growing out of her wings!

"A trap? You can't play that! I blew that thing into the graveyard-"

"Which is were this card can activate!" Jason interrupted, "When a Neko monster battles with another, by removing this trap from the game, '(5D's)An Angel gets its Wings' increases the ATK points of the Neko by the ATK points of the monster that battles against it!"

Chibi Neko-Maid: (ATK: 3400)

"It's time for Hyper Psychic Blaster to say goodbye, again!" encased in her protective veil of angelic wings, Chibi Neko-Maid dashes forward at the speed of light, and slammed her forehead against Hyper-Divine's chest! The impact was so intense that it managed to crack the armor and shatter it to pieces!

The force caused Divine to stagger a few steps back and double over, clutching his chest, "That was a low blow," he gasped.

"I activate Neko Paradise's effect. By sending a spell card from my deck to the graveyard, I get to draw 1 card!" Jason drew once, "I'll just call it a turn for now."

"And you'll regret it!" Divine growled as he started his turn, "I activate my face-down trap, Psychic Tuning, and bring Psychic-Blaster back from the graveyard!" Divine was yet again re-equipped with his armor, only he was now coated with a faint-green aura, "Now that Chibi Neko-Maid's gonna get what's coming to her!" Hyper-Divine launched another attack on the Neko-tuner...

"Since Chibi Neko-Maid is attacked, I can remove the (5D's)Quick Reflexes trap card from the game, and then negate your attack!" after pocketing the trap card, Jason's monster moved out of the way of Divine's attack; as well as Jason, when it headed toward him.

"These hairballs are getting annoying..." Divine growled and concluded with a face-down.

"It's my turn," Jason drew, "And during this turn, I'm about to show you the true power of the Neko Series! I activate the spell Monster Reborn! And use it to bring Dark Magician Girl back from the graveyard!" the famous magician's apprentice returned (ATK: 2000), "Next, I pay 500 life-points and activate Star Blast, to lower her level by 1"

Dark Magician Girl: (Lv: 5)

"And now I tune-in Chibi Neko-Maid with Dark Magician Girl to synchro-summon something incredible!" the small tuner flew up into the sky and the magician-girl followed. In a flash of light, Chibi Neko-Maid was replaced by a large synchro-gate and floated around the Dark Magician Girl. The spellcaster's body disappeared and her frame was replaced by a line of five stars. The necessary requirements burst into a torrent of white light!

"Chilvarous hearts unite to form a gallent spirit! Become the sage to lead the world to the next mew-tation! Synchro-Summon!"

* * *

"Here it comes!" Katherine cheered, "N-E-K-O..."

* * *

"-That spells (5D's)(8) Neko Magician(2500/2100)!" the light from the synchro-tunnel died out as a new monster, with pink hair and hot-pink eyes, took center stage on the field. This new spellcaster wears a pink, frilly dress with a poofy skirt. She also has hot-pink gloves. And being a Neko monster, she has black cat-ears and a tail with a red ribbon tied to it in a bow. The new Neko Synchro curtsied the entire audience, twirling her wand in hand (ATK: 2500).

"2500 ATK points?" Divine flabbergast, "As flattering your little performance has been, that monster hasn't nearly enough ATK points to defeat me!"

"That's why I'm gonna use Neko Paradise's effect to draw 1 card," after discarding a spell from his deck, Jason drew once.

"Next, I play Spellbook inside the Pot, so both of us can draw 3 new cards!" both players drew thrice, "And there's more. Since I activated a spell, Neko-Magician gains a spell counter, and 300 ATK and DEF points," the spellcaster's staff had five blue gems across the rod, one of them in which they glowed.

Neko-Magician: (SC: 1/ATK: 2800/DEF: 2400)

"Then I place 1 card face-down and end my turn," Jason concluded.

"It's my move," Divine started his turn, "I give Hyper Psychic Blaster an equip-spell, called Psycho-Saber!" a sword appeared in Hyper-Divine's hand. It was a double-blade connecting each other into a single sword, "And when the equipped psychic monster attack, my ATK increases by the amount of life-points we have in the battle-phase as well; but 1000 at most."

Hyper Psychic Blaster: (ATK: 4000)

"This isn't good..." Jason muttered.

Hyper-Divine's sword glowed as masses of energy channeled through it, "And now to deal with that magician! Psycho-Blast!" he swung his sword to the point at Jason's monster and fired a ray of energy-rings at her.

"I remove Quick Reflexes from the graveyard to negate your attack!" Jason pocketed another trap in his jacket.

"I guess I forgot to tell you about Psycho-Saber's other effect: during the battle-phase when the equipped monster attacks, I can sacrifice 800 of my life-points! And then, you can't activate any spells or traps!" Divine proved his point when Jason's displayed card shattered into pixels.

**Jason: 1200 (14)**

**Divine: 66000**

The psychic's assault continued. But at the point of contact, the attack was deflected, by a mischievous-looking fairy, wielding a wooden sword in hand, "What?"

* * *

Ken: "Booya! That's my (Digit)(6) Attack Bane(1600/500) right there!"

* * *

"By removing Attack Bane in my graveyard from play, your attack is redirected to another monster on your field! But, if there aren't any except for the attacking monster, you take a direct attack!"

"Say what?" Divine was separated from his psychic-blaster armor. The monster took a slash at his master before reuniting him again. Hyper-Divine clutched at his chest.

**Jason: 1200 (14)**

**Divine: 62000**

"You'll pay for that..." Divine sets a pair of reverse cards and concluded.

"We'll see about that," Jason started his turn, "I activate the spell, Neko Power-Pounce! While there's a Neko monster on my field, one of your monsters is destroyed!" he pointed toward Divine, "And who better than your Hyper Psychic Blaster!" the Neko-Magician raced towards Hyper-Divine, dodging every attack Divine threw at her. The spellcaster leap in the air and slammed her fist hard in Divine's face! The force of the blow pushed Divine across the field, shattering his armor at landing impact.

Divine got up from the crater made from the impact, "Dammit! Whenever Psychic Tuning is sent to the graveyard, I take 400 points of damage for each level of monster that was special-summoned from the graveyard-" the psychic cringed over the electricity coursing through him.

**Jason: 1200 (13)**

**Divine: 58400**

"And with another spell activated, Neko-Magician gains another spell counter!"

Neko-Magician: (SC: 2/ATK: 3100/DEF: 2700)

"And without any monsters on your field, she's free to attack directly!" Neko-Magician fired a magical bolt of energy at Divine.

**Jason: 1200 (13)**

**Divine: 55000**

"I'm gonna call it a turn for now!" Jason concluded.

"And you are going to regret it!" Divine started his turn, "I activate Call of the Haunted to revive my Psychic-Blaster!" after Divine opened his reverse card, his armor returned, "Next, I activate the Phoenix Force spell card! By paying all but 100 of my life-points, my power increases!" so much psychokinetic energy was being exerted from Hyper-Divine he was enveloped in giant flames in the form of a bird.

**Jason: 1200 (13)**

**Divine: 100**

Hyper Psychic Blaster: (ATK: 57900)

"It's time to end this! NOW!" the giant phoenix spread its wings and went flying straight towards Jason and Neko-Magician!

* * *

Nathan: "Oh no!"

Rico: "Jason's gonna lose!"

Ken: "No way!"

Katherine: "Jason can't lost! NO!"

But their pleas were proven deaf as the phoenix smothered its target with massive flames. Knowing the worst has finally came, Katherine buried her face against her sister, breaking up in tears. Until...

"Katherine! Look!" Gabriella gasped.

The little Neko-girl fearfully looked back to the arena to see that the flames were getting smaller and smaller. The fire suppressed enough for Kat to view the source of the reason: the synchro Neko-Magician was standing between two pink-and-yellow tubes, the flames being sucked into the end of one of them!

* * *

"Oh, what now?" Divine demanded.

"The moment you attacked, I activated the Cat Cylinder trap card!" Jason's trap displayed beside him, "And with this, your attack is directed, and you take damage based on the ATK of that monster! Let 'im have it, Neko-Magician!" the synchro-spellcaster mewed as she pointed her staff at her opponent. The other tube fired a huge blast of super-concentrated flame out at Divine.

"I'm not finished yet! I activate my face-down, Rainbow Veil!" after discarding one card from his hand, a barrier of various colors materialized around Hyper-Divine just before the attack hit, "By sending one card from my hand to the graveyard, all effect-damage are reversed into life-point recovery!"

**Jason: 1200 (13)**

**Divine: 58000**

"And since it's the end of my turn, I'd have to sacrifice my monster because I powered up with Phoenix Force, and then take damage equal to its ATK. But, since I used Rainbow Veil this turn, that sort of situation is somewhat negotiable!" Divine's armor disappeared.

**Jason: 1200 (13)**

**Divine: 115900**

"Look, Hutchins. I know you're tired," Divine said matter-of-factly, "Why waste your time and energy trying to prove something that shouldn't happen? I don't get it. Why defy your destiny?"

Jason's eyes were covered by his bangs before he spoke, "That just it. There's nothing 'destined' about it."

"What?"

"It's true Yusei and I are born in the Satellite, but that's now where we're gonna be cooped up for life. That's the point I'm trying to make by winning today: we all have our own lives to live. No one has the right to tell others who they can and can't be or do. That's what I believe in, and that's why I duel!" suddenly, Jason's right wrist glowed a bright-red!"

* * *

"Hey, do you see what I see?" Rico asked.

"It's the same mark Jason had back then!" Kenichi exclaimed.

Katherine was surprised as well, and wanted to see Gabriella's expression as well, to see her older sister clutching her own bandaged arm, "Gabe, is your arm bothering you?"

"No, Kat. It's... it's nothing to worry about..."

But Katherine knew better. She saw Gabriella in the situation she was in time and time again. She knew something was wrong...

* * *

"It's my turn!" Jason drew his last card, "And now I give Neko-Magician a little accessory: the Neko Magic-Staff equip-spell!" the spellcaster's wand evolved into a long and slender staff, complete with a jade gem the shape of a cat's head, "And with this new wand, Neko-Magician gains another counter, plus 800 more ATK points from the equip-spell!"

Neko-Magician: (SC: 3/ATK: 3400-4200/DEF: 3000)

"Next I use it card-effect: by sending a number of cards from my hand to the graveyard, Neko-Magician gains spell-counters equal to the amount I discarded. And since I'm discarding 2, she gains 2!" after discarding his two cards, five stars appeared in the jewel of Neko-Magician's staff.

Neko-Magician: (SC: 5/ATK: 4800/DEF: 3600)

"Now all five counters are in place! And that means I get to activate Neko-Magician's special-ability!"

"Whatever it is, it won't level my life points!" Divine barked.

"By removing all 5 counters, she can't attack this turn, but she can activate a super-special ability! I can either destroy all your monsters, eliminate your spells and traps, draw 3 new cards, or bring one monster back from the graveyard! And since your field is empty, I can special-summon Ken's (Digit)(7) Defense Bane(500/1800) tuner-monster!" the synchro-spellcaster twirled her wand over her head and zapped a pink beam at the ground, opening a portal which released an impish-looking fairy hiding behind a shiny blue shield (DEF: 1800).

Neko-Magician: (SC: 0/ATK: 2500/DEF: 2100)

"And you know what that means! Synchro-Summon!" the Defense Bane separated into two synchro-gates and surrounded Neko-Magician. All the while, Jaosn chanted:

"Divested stars form a timid soul, discovered in the darkest reaches! Unlock the gates to remove the shadows, and create the titan it will become, on its long-forgotten journey! Synchro Summon! Colossal Fighter, Accelerate!"

Jason's favored colossal warrior appeared (ATK: 2800), "And thanks to his special ability, he gains 100 ATK points for each warrior in the graveyard! And since there are 3 Neko-Warriors, plust the 1 Neko-Polefighter, Colossal Fighter gains 400 ATK points!" phantoms of the four warrior could been seen as the synchro powered up.

Colossal Fighter: (ATK: 3200)

"Fat luck that'll do you! No matter how much power you have, I'll always ovewhelm you! You lost! It's over!" Divine thumbed his chest in over-confidence, "The only thing you can do in forfeit to yours truely: Divine of New Domino City!"

"...I guess you're right. If I just chip away at your life-points, you'll only find a way to get more back; that much I found out about those cards of yours," Jason stated, "All throwout this match I discovered your deck is based on powering up your Hyper Psychic Blaster, and increasing your life-points to prepare your for that phoenix combo you use. You also use cards to protect your synchro from battle-attacks. And even if I do manage to destroy that monster, it'll just come back to resume your usual routine. You have so many life-points it's almost impossible to deplete them all even with five powerful monster against you. But if your life-points just happen to alter, that could change everything."

"Just where are you getting at?"

"I'm getting close to the end of this duel. I activate my final trap card!" when Jason flipped over his reverse card, Divine was horrified at what exactly it was: it depicts an armored warrior seemingly absorbing life-energy of a fallen fighter...

"That card! It's... That's Life Equalizer?"

"And since your life-points exceeds mine by at least 8000, boy scores are changed to _3000_!"

"No!" but it was too late as gigantic masses of psychic energy burst out of Divine's body, transferring itself into Jason's. Soon Divine was robbed of most of his stamina.

**Jason: 3000 (12)**

**Divine: 3000**

"This can't be happening! Not to me! It's can't!" Divine shouted hoarsely, "You're supposed to be a stinkin' Satellite! YOU WASN'T SUPPOSED TO DEFEAT ONE OF NEW DOMINO!"

"Haven't I made it clear to you before? It's not where you came from that matters, it's who you are! And you're just a bully pushing people around, thinking you can do whatever you want to them! That stops here and now! GO, COLOSSAL FIGHTER! END THIS!"

Colossal Fighter dashes straight across the field and slammed its fist in Divine's chest. The duel was over and done.

**Jason: 3000 (12)**

**Divine: 0**

The entire stadium was silent. After Jason's last move, no one was sure how to respond. Fortunately, Sonya responded for them...

Sonya: _"Aaaand there goes the Wild Card Finals! First the Duelist Genesis, the the Duel Terminals, and finally he concluded with the unpredictable Neko series! Let's give many rounds of applauds for Jason Issac Hutchins, the one, true Wild Card!"_

Everyone cheered for the lone duelist, inspired by Sonya's words.

* * *

"Jason finally did it! He beat Divine at his own game!" Rico cried.

"Hmph. And here I though Jason never had it in him," Nathan admitted.

"Aw, hell yeah! Out of the frying pan and through the fire! And Jason was _on _fire there!" Kenichi whooped.

"MEOW-WOW-WOW-WOW! I KNEW THIS WHOLE TIME JASON WOULD WIN!" Katherine cheered, with massive tears pouring out of her eyes, EVERYONE THOUGHT HE COULDN'T DO IT! BUT I KNEW JASON AND MY NEKOS CAN DO IT! J-A-S-O-N! THAT SPELLS JASON!"

* * *

Taking in all that has happened, Jason still couldn't believe he did it. He has beat the most dangerous adversary he had ever faced; and it was all thanks to his friends and their cards. So all he must do now is to find Goodwin and get the answers he so desperately needed...

But before he knew what happened next, his Mark of the Dragon glowed brighter, causing thousands of needle-impulsive signals travelling through it. Jason clutched hard at the mark, but that didn't prevent him from reaching his limit. Soon enough, the sensory overload caused him to lose consciousness and collapse.

* * *

In the private box, the Director smiled, 'The time has finally come... Now then, let us proceed with the plan,' Goodwin turned to Lazar, "Bring in Subject D-5 Espilon to our sacred temple," the Vice-Director bowed and left, 'The Crimson Dragon is stirring... It's time for the final phase of the 5D's Project.'

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATEBASE**

**(1) Hanewata**

**Stats: [Fairy/Tuner] Level 1 ATK/200 DEF/300**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Description: You can discard this card to make any effect damage you take this turn 0. This effect can be activated during either player's turn.**

**(2) Neko-Kid**

**Stats: [Fairy/Effect] Level 2 ATK/700 DEF/700**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Description: When this card is Special Summoned, you can Special Summon any number of** '**Neko** **Kid****'(s) from your hand or Deck.**

**(3) Jinzo-Returner**

**Stats: [Machine/Effect] Level 3 ATK/600 DEF/1800**

**Attribute: DARK**

**Description: This card can attack your opponent directly. When this card is sent to the Graveyard, you can Special Summon 1 "Jinzo" from your Graveyard. Destroy it during your End Phase.**

**(4) Jinzo**

**Stats: [Machine/Effect] Level 6 ATK/2400 DEF/1500**

**Attribute: DARK**

**Description: Trap Cards cannot be activated. The effects of all face-up Trap Cards are negated.**

**(5) Jinzo-Lord**

**Stats: [Machine/Effect] Level 8 ATK/2600 DEF/1600**

**Attribute: DARK**

**Description: This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card cannot be Special Summoned except by sending 1 face-up "Jinzo" you control to the Graveyard. Trap Cards cannot be activated and the effects of all Trap Cards on the field are negated. Once per turn, you can destroy all face-up Trap Cards. Inflict 300 damage to your opponent for each card destroyed by this effect.**

**(6) Attack Bane**

**Stats: [Fairy/Effect] Level 2 ATK/1600 DEF/500**

**Attribute: EARTH**

**Description: You can discard this card from your hand to special summon one "Defense Bane" from your deck. If your opponent declares an attack while this card is in the graveyard, you may remove it from play to negate the attack and have the attacking monster attack another one of your opponent's monsters. If your opponent does not have any other monsters on the field the controlled monster can attack directly.**

**(7) Defense Bane**

**Stats: [Fairy/Tuner] Level 2 ATK/500 DEF/1800**

**Attribute: WATER**

**Description: You can discard this card from your hand to special summon one "Attack Bane" from your deck. If your opponent summons or switches a monster into defense mode while this card is in your graveyard, you may remove it from play to destroy the defense position monster.**

**(8) Neko-Magician**

**Stats: [Fairy/Synchro/Effect] Level 6 ATK/2500 DEF/2100**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Synchro Requirements: 1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner 'Neko'** **monsters**

**Description: This monster is also Spellcaster-Type. Each time you activate a spell card, add 1 Spell Counter to this card (max: 5). By removing 5 counters from this card, you can execute one of the following effects; this card cannot attack if you activate these effects:**

**Destroy all monsters your opponent controls.**

**Destroy all spell and trap cards your opponent controls.**

**Special-Summon 1 monster from your graveyard.**

**Draw 3 cards.**

**(This last card is inspired by a one Mewstar0013, who I can tell is a huge fan of Tokyo MewMew, though I can't say the same for myself.)

* * *

**

**Yusei: "Now, let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh: 5D's!: Now's the time to come face-to-face with Akiza. Can I remove that wall she built around her heart? Find out on the next Stardust Accelerator!"**

**Please Review.**


	45. Duel of the Dragons: Part 1

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

* * *

_"What an amazing duel, Ladies and Gentlemen!"_ as the MC made his announcement, Yusei walked down the hallway from the KaibaDome's garage, _"After that intense Wild Card battle, the Black Rose will now be moving on to face the Satellite's very own Yusei Fudo, in the Fortune Cup's final battle!_" then at a four-way intersection, he nearly runs into Akiza coming from the left,_ Who will win? Who will go home?_" the two imminent opponents lock eyes and stop, faces about a foot and a half away,_ "Stay tuned to find out!"_

Yusei saw the girl clutching her right arm, "Everything okay, Akiza?"

"I'm fine!" she answered defensively.

Seeing her in the sort of position she was in reminded Yusei of how he first confronted her, how he first witnessed her horrible powers firsthand... "So what's your deal with these marks of ours? When you saw me and Jason with one the other day, you really freaked out."

"Yeah, well this mark has brought me nothing but pain! So what good can come from having more around? Ya got that?" Akiza's eyes have shown actual fear, "It's dangerous. So just keep away!"

"Yusei!" the Satellite looked toward him to see Katherine and Gabriella, along with Kenichi, Rico and Nathan, running towards him, with worry in the little girl's eyes, "Jason isn't in the infirmary and we can't find him! Do you know where he-" but seeing the Black Rose made the Neko-girl yelp in surprise, "Eep! The witch!"

As soon as he heard those words, Rico was forced to clamp his hands over Kat's mouth, "That's not a witch! That's my big sister! Now be polite!"

"Oops! Sorry, nya!" Kat bowed apologetically.

Akiza didn't respond, but she wondered why Rico was with a bunch like this. Does he not realize the consequences of when the figure out who he truely is...?"

"Yusei!"

"There you are!"

The twins, Leo and Luna, came running toward Yusei from behind to join the conversation.

"We need you to settle an argument-" but seeing Akiza puts him in the same situation as well, "Huh! It's the-"

"You stop right there!" Rico threatened.

Luna is unnerved to meet Akiza's eyes, and not just because Akiza looks annoyed. Akiza looked aside.

"What's going on back here?" Vice-Director Lazar appeared from the last unoccupied hallway, approaching to the center of attention, "Everybody getting along nicely? I must say, that was quite the duel just now, that Mr. Hutchins. I didn't quite think he could pull off that combo he did," the Vice-Director turned to Akiza, "Now, as for you, Ms. Akiza, before the final round gets underway, Director Goodwin has a few things he'd like to talk to you about. I'd say more, but it's confidential. Why don't you come with me, and we'll-"

"-Akiza must rest," from behind Akiza came Sayer, leader of the Acadia Movement, flanked by a pair of anonymous figures wearing strange robes, having approached from behind as well.

"And you are...?"

"Don't play dumb, Lazar. Your reputation precedes you," Sayer's assistants stepped in front of Akiza, standing solidly between her and Lazar, while Sayer himself stood to the side, "We both know you don't like surprises, so let's not waste time pretending you haven't done your homework, like I have."

The Vice-Director just chuckled.

"Stay away from Akiza. And tell the _Director_ she's not interested in what he has to say. Now excuse us..." Sayer raised a hand, and the two figures, Akiza, and himself left in procession through Katherine and the others.

Yusei watched, scowling with suspicion. Akiza didn't even look back.

"Well. The Director will not be pleased with this atoll," Lazar pouted.

"What's the story?" Yusei questioned Lazar, "Goodwin; what's he want with Akiza?"

"And what've you done to Jason?" Katherine demanded, "Why isn't he in the hospital room?"

"Did you not get the memo, Mr. Fudo?" Lazar dripped sarcastically, "I could've sworn we meant to keep you posted. So sorry about that..." then he turned to Katherine, "And as for D-5- er, I mean, Mr. Hutchins, little girl, where he is is none of you all's concern. Now if you would excuse me..." Lazar walked pass Katherine, ignoring the steamed look she was giving him.

Yusei watched Akiza and her 'entourage', still walking away down the other corridor.

"That Akiza creeps me out," Leo admitted.

"She seems so sad..." Luna said sincerely.

Yusei looked at Luna, seeing she was holding her arm like Akiza was, "Something wrong?"

"Um... my arm kinda stings or something. Whenever that girl looks at me... I feel all weird and stuff..."

Yusei stared at her, concerned. He knew this is no coincidence...

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 42: Duel of the Dragons**

**Part 1: Rumbling Rose

* * *

**

His eyes were heavy as Jason Hutchins tried to open them. When he awoke, he found himself lying on a stone-cold floor. He struggled to get up to see where he is. Looking around, he was surrounded in a large circle of columns, in front of him being a large stone temple, "Where on earth am I...?"

_"I'm glad to see you're finally awake, Subject D-5 Epsilon," _Jason quickly turned to seen none other than the Director standing in front of him.

"Goodwin!" Jason grabbed for him, but his hands just passed through him, "A hologram. I should've known."

_"You look like you don't have the faintest idea where you are. Well then, allow me to enlighten you," _Goodwin started explaining as he gestured around the shrine, _"The People of the Stars have dedicated this ancient temple to the Dragon Star. This is where the five Signers, dragon birthmarks on their arms, will summon the Crimson Dragon."_

"Crimson Dragon?" now that Goodwin mentioned it, Jason noticed a large insignia around the shrine, in the shape of a dragon!"

_"Now is anything coming back to you? You see, I was the one who graphed that Mark of the Dragon onto you. You were destined to become a Signer, bestowed with the power of the Crimson Dragon."_

"That's all well and good, but what exactly is a Signer?"

_"A Signer belongs to a selected group of people chosen by the stars, to call upon the legendary dragon. Do you recall the day you escaped from the research center went to the Satellite?"_

Jason gasped, as a jolt of lightning traveled through his brain, yet unleashing another fragment of his memory...

_**Flashback...**_

_Jason saw himself running through an endless hallway, influenced by the blaring sirens on the ceiling. He could hear bullets whizzing past him as he tried to dodge as many as he could, though on may have grazed his shoulder. He finally made it to the elevator before the guards fired another barrage of bullets being blocked by the closing door..._

_**...end flashback.**_

_"I'll take that as a yes," _Goodwin chuckled, _"I searched high and low for you. And ever since the Facility, I've been monitoring you. I waited and waited for the day when you would become the duelist with the ultimate power I seek..." _the Director smirked, _"Finally that day has come! I truly believe that the power of the dragon grows in proportion to the duelist's own abilities. In this regard, I truly am grateful you have come this far."_

"But what about the other Signers? Did you do the same thing to them as to me?"

_"Afraid not. You see, the Marks of the Dragon choose their heralds via guidance of fate. That mark you have is a man-made imitation. But it's power is equal to that of the real thing! Now all I need now to complete this project is one more field test..." _the Director pointed past Jason and the Signer looks behind him. And what he saw caused his heart to sink.

"What in the..."

* * *

**Meanwhile...**

Outside in the parking lot as the sun sets, you can see two large moving-type trucks, fancy, futuristic, and marked with a logo that reads A.M., surrounded by more faceless Arcadia persons spaced at regular intervals around them, standing guard.

Within it, Akiza lay in a tank of water, dressed in some kind of crimson bodysuit that clung to her figure tightly.

Above her, an electronic screen activated, viewing the Arcadia's leader, _"Akiza, about earlier, it's just- look, we've exposed the Movement by coming to this tournament, and people will want to know more," _he said, concerned,"_We knew that risk going into this. In fact, certain individuals may continue to approach you and try to pry information from you."_

"Okay; but I can speak for myself. I don't need you to babysit me or anything, Sayer!" Akiza replied, "I'm not going to betray the Movement, if that's what you're worried about. You guys are like my family now; no one could ever make me turn against all of you."

_"I'm so relived to hear you say that. Goodwin and his people are part of the Order of Yliaster, a group seeking to resurrect a force known as the Crimson Dragon. If allowed to return, the Dragon will bring the world to its knees. That's where we come in. He Who Rules The Sky has given the members of the Arcadia Movement special powers; we are his chosen. We will stop Goodwin and lead the world down the right path."_

"Sounds like a good time."

_"Yes, well, speaking of time, it's almost time for your duel with Yusei," _Akiza's right arm twitched at the mention of the Satellite's name,_ "He might be a member of Iliaster; we're not sure yet. Either way, it is crucial that you defeat him. Once you get through this satellite, you can bring Jack Atlas to his knees, and then the crowd's jeers will change to cheers and our time will finally come. You're ready, aren't you?"_

"Of course," Akiza nodded. With the screen blank, she was free to dwell in er thoughts... 'And maybe then I can rid myself of this power I possess...' she remembered all the horrible things she had done, from when she attacked her father as a little girl, to when she abused her abilities while at Duel Academy, She pulled her arm from the liquid to look at the wretched mark. She grips her arm, teeth clenched, face working in terror and fury, 'Why did this mark choose _me_? What did I do to deserve it? I must find a way to rid myself of its control before it's too late!'

* * *

**Later...**

Yusei sat alone in the competitor's lounge. The Signer was going through his Deck, checking each card carefully, also lost in thought, 'Akiza. With the power of my deck, I know I can help you overcome the hate and anger you feel. But first I have to figure out why you don't want to be helped, the Signer looked at his arm, "You say you're afraid of me because of my mark, because your mark has caused you nothing but pain. But whatever these marks are, they connect all of us somehow, and I'm sure Goodwin knows why. And something tells me those characters who hang around you know what's going on, too. Everyone is out to use us somehow, and we can't let that happen. We've gotta come together, like a team or something,' his attention turned to the screen in front of him, showing the Black Rose behind her white mask (how they got that image is beyond him), 'That includes you, Akiza. I've gotta use our duel to remove that mask you're hiding behind. But in order to do that, I have to figure you out. Who you are, what makes you tick,' Yusei then pulls out the Stardust Dragon card, 'I don't wanna have to go full-force, but if it means tearing down that wall you've built around yourself, I'll do it. And, then, after this battle, I need to get Jack on our side too.

With that done, Yusei placed the dragon card into his deck.

* * *

**Later...**

Sayer stood in a room and looked out across the Fortune Cup stadium on a screen, when suddenly there was a soft knock from the door, which opened to reveal Akiza in her usual attire.

"It's time, Sayer," she said.

Sayer smiled as he stepped over to her and tenderly brushed a stray hair from her shoulder. His hands moved to her hair, where he fiddled with her hair-clip, "If you find yourself at a point where you feel like your power is about to take over, just remember that this energy stabilizer in your hair will limit your powers. The fate of the world is in your hands; we're all counting on you, Akiza."

Akiza spots her mask sitting on the coffee table, "What about my mask?"

"Take it. But you won't need it."

* * *

**Meanwhile at the shrine...**

The sight Jason caught has caused his heart to sink. He was now looking at not one, but four figures, each one looking just like him! (except for the criminal mark, of course)

"They- They look just like me! What is this?"

_"Why the surprise, Epsilon? After all, they are your brothers... in a sense that you are all Signers, as well as clones."_

"Clones?" Jason exclaimed, "What, poking and probing me isn't enough so you decided to make four more copies of me?"

_"I'm afraid you misunderstood me. I said that in the sense that you are 'all' clones. That includes you."_

Those very words Goodwin said hit Jason like a brick. Did he mean, that this whole time he yearned to fine his true self, he was really some clone of some person?

"No... No! You're lying!"

_"Am I? Tell me, do you even have a belly-button?"_

Jason was silent...

_"Of course. You see, all humans are born connected to an umbilical cord, which removed, forms a bellybutton on their stomachs. Since you never had one, there was no way you were actually born. 'You' were created."_

Jason didn't know what to say, let alone think. Was he actually born in some test tube? Did he really exist only as some pet-project?

_"But enough of all that. It is time to bring this to the grand finale!" _The four clones took out their own duel disks and inserted their own decks.

'So it's a duel he wants huh?' Jason got the message and brought out his Genex for one last battle. But not before adding a few last-minute adjustments to it.

_"I'm so glad you decided to cooperate for this last experiment. Now then, let the final phase of the Project: 5D's, begin!"

* * *

_

**Later, back at the KaibeDome...**

Fireworks explode over the lively KaibaDome. The crowd is jeering, cheering, and catcalling in anticipation of the match, most of it anti-Akiza material:

("Beat the freak!")

("This is a tournament, not a creep-fest!")

("Nobody likes you, witch!")

Amongst the crowds were Yusei's group, unnerved by the angry crowd.

"My goodness, they say such mean things," Yanagi cried, "Why're kids so cruel? She's just a child!"

"People don't understand her special abilities," Tanner explained, "and when people don't understand something they see, they tend to be afraid of it."

"So, if everyone's so afraid of her, why are they here to watch her duel?" Leo asked.

"That's easy, Leo. They're all hopin' that she'll lose. See, when people are afraid of something, they don't like to be alone. So sometimes, they'll band together, hoping to see that something feel bad, which makes _them_ feel _good_."

"Wow, talk about seeing the glass half-empty, Tanner," Dexter replied.

Luna is looking at the floor again, worried.

* * *

**Within Goodwin's box...**

"I tried to bring the girl to you, Director, but that 'Arcadia' bunch wouldn't let her out of their sights," Lazar informed, "They may prove to be a problem down the road."

"Hmph. I'm not worried about those deluded fools. It's not like they have very much influence. Still, they did manage to make her their puppet. The situation is ironic, if you think about it," Goodwin summoned a holograhic screen, showing Akiza being followed by a pair of Arcadia people down the hallway, "The Black Rose is a member of the Arcadia Movement. The Arcadia Movement opposes us. And yet, she's going to do us a favor. According to Zigzix's readings, she's more than capable of getting Yusei to reveal his true power. That being said, I do hope Yusei manages to win this duel."

"I want to see it, Lazar. Don't you?" the Director turned to Jack Atlas, "Don't you want to see Jack's Red Dragon Archfiend clash with Yusei's Stardust Dragon again? I want to witness the energy such a clash creates! I want to _feel_ the power!"

"Huh! I'll make you feel so much power you won't be able to handle it," Jack smirked, and then thought, 'Yusei, you may think you're an incredible duelist, but this Black Rose has a power unlike anything you've ever encountered. And be sure not to lose; 'cause I want to see Goodwin's face when I use the Dragon's power for myself!'

Goodwin gazes back at Jack with a smile, oblivious to his thoughts...

* * *

_"Yeah! It's finally time for the final!" _the MC slams his foot up on the desk as the stadium goes dark, _"The winner of this match gets to go on to the ultimate showdown- a one-on-one, no-holds-barred duel with the Master of Faster himself, Jack Atlas!"_

_"Our first finalist is the mysterious Black Rose, Akiza!" _smoke-cannons go off, shooting four columns of it into the air. Akiza entered via elevator platform, only to widespread the jeers.

("Go home, witch!")

("You're gonna lose, you freak!")

_"Challenging her is the shooting star from the Satellite Sector, Yusei Fudo!" _more smoke-cannons fired on the opposite side. Yusei appeared facing Akiza, glaring fearlessly. The stadium then lights up.

* * *

Leo: "Come on, Yusei, you can do it!"

Dex: "Bring it on!"

Yanagi: "This'll be exciting!"

Tanner: "Be careful. _Very_ careful."

Luna hears a fearful cooing. Kuribon, her spirit mascot, appeared.

_"So you're scared too, Kuribon? Something bad is going to happen, isn't it."

* * *

_

As for Sayer, we see him once more leaning against a wall in a shadowy entrance to the stands, 'Akiza, this is our moment. Seize this opportunity, and introduce the world to the true power of the Arcadia Movement...'

* * *

And Rico, he was sitting at the stands, with Nathan beside him.

'C'mon, Sis! Go get 'im!'

* * *

_"Every card has led us to this moment! The final round of the Fortune Cup is about to begin!"_

Yusei and Akiza activated their duel-disks and drew their hand.

"LET'S DO THIS!"

**Yusei: 4000**

**Akiza: 4000

* * *

**

**Bact at the Sacred Temple...**

Jason stood face-to-face with the four clone, the duel already underway.

**D-1: Alpha: 4000**

**D-2: Beta: 4000**

**D-3: Gamma: 4000**

**D-4: Delta: 4000**

**D-5: Epsilon(Jason): 16000**

"I'll make the first move," the first clone, who we will now address as Subject: D-1 Alpha, started the duel, "First I play the spell Instant Fusion. By paying 1000 life points, I can special-summon a level-5 or lower monster from my extra deck. And I choose to summon the level-5 (1) Flame Swordsman(1800/1600)," samurai wearing red and blue armor and carrying a large sword appeared (ATK: 1800).

**D-1: Alpha: 3000**

**D-2: Beta: 4000**

**D-3: Gamma: 4000**

**D-4: Delta: 4000**

**D-5: Epsilon(Jason): 4000**

"Next, I summon the tuner-monster Genex Controller from my hand in ATK position," the famous Genex tuner appeared next to the swordsman (ATK: 1400)

"Genex Controller?" Jason exclaimed, "And with a level-5 FIRE monster on the field..."

"I tune my level-3 Genex Controller, with my level-5 Flame Swordsman, to synchro-summon Thermal Genex!" after the synchro process, the burning blue furnace monster appeared, its cobalt flames blazing through its iron shell. Its ATK power increased by 200 points due to having a FIRE monster in his graveyard (ATK: 2600).

"Thermal Genex; That's my card..." Jason claimed.

"Next, I activate the spell Painful Choice. This card lets me select 5 cards from my deck. Then you have to pick one of the cards to add to my hand. The others go straight to the graveyard. These are the cards I selected. Giant-sized holograms of five cards appeared in Jason's view, the cards being Infernal Flame Emperor, Hino-Kagu-Tsuchi, Darkblaze Dragon, Draconic Knight, and Lave Golem.

"So all I have to do is pick, right?" Jason reviewed, "Then I pick that Spirit monster there."

Alpha added the Hino-Kago-Tsuchi monster into his hand, while the other went into the graveyard, "Now that that's settled, I activate the Ante spell card, Now we both have to select one card from our hand. And if the selected card is a monster with a level lower than the other's choice, then that card is sent to the graveyard, and its holder take 1000 points of damage. You can select a spell or a trap card, but that will count as a level-0."

"So that's why he played Painful Choice!" Jason exclaimed.

"I select Hino-Kago-Tsuchi from my hand."

"I guess I don't have a choice... I select Recycle Genex," a display of the said card shattered as Jason was forced to discard the monster. He cringed at the red aura surrounding him.

**D-1: Alpha: 3000**

**D-2: Beta: 4000**

**D-3: Gamma: 4000**

**D-4: Delta: 4000**

**D-5: Epsilon(Jason): 15000**

And thermal Genex's power increased even more.

Thermal Genex: (ATK: 3400)

"Finally, I place 1 card face-down and end my turn," a reverse card appeared.

"It's my turn," Beta began the second move, "I summon Genex Undine," the water-bender of the Genex appeared (ATK: 1200), "And since I successfully summoned her to the field, her special ability gets activated. So by sending a WATER monster from my deck to the graveyard, I add Genex Controller to my hand. Next, I activate Double Summon, and use its effect to summon Genex Controller to the field. Now I use them synchro-summon Hydro Genex," after the synchro process, the Genex water-spearholder appeared in place of the two original monsters (ATK: 2300), "Now I activate The Dark Door continuous-spell. Now each duelist can only attack with one monster per turn. But since this is a 4-on-1 match, I cannot attack on the first turn, and neither can anyone else. So I'll play this face-down for now," a reverse card appeared.

"And now it's my turn," Gamma drew, "I activate Double Summon and summon 2 monsters: Genex Blastfan and Genex Controller," a third copy of the tuner appeared along with the green mechanical fan mech, "And now I use them to synchro-summon Windmill Genex," after the third synchro-process, the giant green mecha appeared. He got a power bonus to attune of 300 points for each set card on the field (ATK: 2600), "I place 3 cards face-down and end my turn," Windmill powered up from the extra face-downs.

Windmill Genex: (ATK: 3500)

"It's my turn now," Delta drew as well, "I activate the Double Summon spell as well. And this time, I summon the monster known as the Marauding Captain," a warrior with rusted armor appeared (ATK: 1200), "And thanks to his special-ability, I special-summon Genex Controller," a forth controller appeared (ATK: 1400).

"It doesn't take a genius to know what happens next," Jason said annoyed.

"I tune my Controller with Marauding Captain to synchro-summon Geo Genex," the stone-encrusted mecha appeared from the summoning, this time in DEF mode (ATK: 2800), "And now I summon Genex Turbine in DEF mode," the green-tank Genex appeared, "And with his special ability-"

"I know! Turbine's effect gives all Genexes 400 extra ATK points!" Jason irritably finished.

Thermal Genex: (ATK: 3800)

Hydro Genex: (ATK: 2700)

Windmill Genex: (ATK: 3900)

Geo Genex: (ATK: 2200)

"Now I equip Genex Turbine with Mist Body. Now Turbine cannot be destroyed in battle. That ends my turn."

"Finally, I get to make a move!" Jason started his turn, 'But I can't believe those guys summoned all four of my Genex synchros on their first turn! But fortunately, they can only attack due to The Dark Door being in play. So I'll just have to hold up for a while so I can summon the monster I need.' "Alright, I summon Genex Searched in DEF mode!" the Genexes' deck-searcher held the fort for Jason (DEF: 400), "And then I'll park 2 face-downs and call it a turn," 2 reverse cards appeared, giving his opponents' Windmill more power.

Windmill Genex: (ATK: 4500)

"It's my turn now," Alpha drew...

"Before Alpha makes a move, I activate my Solemn Wishes trap," Beta revealed his face-down, "Now I gain 500 life-points whenever I draw a card."

Windmill Genex: (ATK: 4200)

"Next, I activate the trap card, Synchro Blast," Alpha flipped open his reverse card, "And now I attack your Genex Searcher with Thermal Furnace Blaze!" the giant furnace fired a torrent of cobalt flames.

"Not so fast! I activate the trap, Genex D-Shield!" Genex Searcher became protected by a golden energy shield with a big yellow 'G' on it, "And since you attacked a Genex monster, this trap's energy protects it! And what's great about this one is that I can set it back face-down instead of sending it to the graveyard," the card flipped back down.

"Now the effect of Synchro Blast activates. When one of my synchro-monsters attack, 500 points of damage are taken out of your life points," Alpha's trap fired a beam of energy at Jason.

**D-1: Alpha: 3000**

**D-2: Beta: 4000**

**D-3: Gamma: 4000**

**D-4: Delta: 4000**

**D-5: Epsilon(Jason): 14500**

"That ends my turn."

"On to me now," Beta started his turn, "And since I drew a card, I gain 500 life points due to Solemn Wishes' effect."

**D-1: Alpha: 3000**

**D-2: Beta: 4500**

**D-3: Gamma: 4000**

**D-4: Delta: 4000**

**D-5: Epsilon(Jason): 14500**

"And now I summon (2) Fire Princess(1300/1500) in DEF mode," a young woman in blazing red robes appeared, with a large wooden wand in her hand (DEF: 1500), "Next, I activate the continuous-spell, Spell Absorption. So every time a spell card is activated, I gain and additional 500 points of damage. And every time my life-points increase, Fire Princess' special-ability activates, dealing 500 points of damage to your life-points. Finally, I place 1 card face-down and end my turn."

Windmill Genex: (ATK: 4500)

"And now it's my turn," Gamma drew, "I activate Windmill Genex's special ability. By sending 1 card in my hand to the graveyard, one of your face-down cards are destroyed. And I choose the card on the left," Windmill unleashed a massive hurricane from its windmill-propeller, blowing away Jason's Genex D-Shield, "And now to destroy Genex Searcher," the green mecha fired another windstorm intended for the Searcher."

"I activate my other face-down, Genex Mirror Shield! Now all monsters in ATK mode on your field are destroyed!" the attack was reflected by a large barrier.

"I activate my face-down, Dark Bribe. It negates your trap and destroys it," the blast managed to break through the barrier and blew awat Genex Searcher, and almost Jason along with it.

"Genex Searcher's ability activates!" Jason stated, "When its destroyed in battle and sent to the grave, I can look for a Genex monster with 1500 or less ATK in my deck, and then add it to my hand!" the Satellite showed Omni Genex before adding the card into his hand.

"I'll end my turn for now," Gamma concluded.

"On to me," Delta started his turn, "First I switch Geo Genex to ATK mode (ATK: 2200). Next I activate his special ability. If there's another Genex monster on my field, Geo Genex's ATK and DEF points are switched until the end-phase of my turn," the golem mecha's body exhausted an orange aura.

Geo Genex: (ATK: 3200/DEF: 1800)

"Now I equip him with Big Bang Blast, giving him 400 more ATK points," Geo Genex's right fist began to glow a burning orange.

Geo Genex: (ATK: 3600)

"And that activates the effect of Spell Absorption, and then triggers Fire Princess' special-ability," Beta's princess blasted a fireball at Jason.

**D-1: Alpha: 3000**

**D-2: Beta: 5000**

**D-3: Gamma: 4000**

**D-4: Delta: 4000**

**D-5: Epsilon(Jason): 14000**

"Now attack D-5 Epsilon directly!" Geo swiftly slammed his fist into Jason's chest. The target flew backwards into the shrine, creating a crater near the bottom of the stairs.

**D-1: Alpha: 3000**

**D-2: Beta: 5000**

**D-3: Gamma: 4000**

**D-4: Delta: 4000**

**D-5: Epsilon(Jason): 10400**

'What was that blow just now?' Jason thought as he stumbled out of the crater, 'There's no doubt about it: that battle-damage was real!' the he felt the same burning sensation and saw that his arm was glowing again, as well as the four other clones.

"And now I activate the effect of Spirit Burner, and switch the equipped monster back into DEF position. And since my turn is now over, Geo's effect wears off," the golem knelt back down into DEF mode.

Geo Genex: (DEF: 2800)

"This is not going to be easy," Jason groaned.

* * *

**Meanwhile...**

Back at the KaibaDome, the duel between Yusei and Akiza was already in progress...

**Yusei: 4000**

**Akiza: 4000**

"The first move is mine!" Akiza began the duel, "I draw! I summon Wall of Ivy in defense mode!" a tall bush of ivy and thick vines was summoned to the field (DEF: 1200), "Next, I place one card face-down and end my turn!" a single reverse card appeared in front of Akiza.

"My move, then," Yusei started his turn, "And I counter by playing Speed Warrior in attack mode!" in a flash of light, Yusei's speedy skater appeared (ATK: 900), "On the turn Speed Warrior is summoned, its attack points are doubled!" Speed Warrior pumped up his power-level.

Speed Warrior: (ATK: 1800)

"Speed Warrior, shred that Wall of Ivy!" the skater landed a roundhouse kick which broke apart the Wall of Ivy.

"You had better be careful, Yusei, because when my Ivy Wall is destroyed, one of my Ivy Tokens takes root on _your_ side of the field!" a small weed-like creature appeared on Yusei's field next to Speed Warrior (0/0).

MC: "_We've seen the Black Rose use this strategy before; it *really* created problems for Commander Koda and Sir Ransborg! What kind of havoc will she wreak on Yusei?"_

"These could be a problem," Yusei stated, eying the token, "It's your move."

"You're too kind," Akiza started her turn, "Now then! Remember that last round, when I summoned Wall of Ivy only to have you tear it down with your Speed Warrior? Well I'm playing the Cursed Ivy trap card to bring my Wall of Ivy back!" when Akiza played her reverse-card, the wall returned, "In case you can't tell, I've got kind of a green thumb. Oh, and by the way, I really should thank you, 'cause Cursed Ivy gets powered up by my Ivy Wall. So now it's stronger than it was before."

'I know what she's doing,' Yusei reviewed in his mind, She's trying to increase the number of ivy tokens on my field. 'Cause when that little sprout gets destroyed, I'll take 300 points of damage. And if she gets _more_ on my field-'

"You gonna stand around and think, or are you gonna duel?" Akiza snapped.

MC: _"It's been a relatively mellow duel so far. Even the crowd seems to have simmered down a bit, but, could we simply be experiencing the calm before the storm?"_

"My move!" Yusei drew, "And I'm sending Speed Warrior to my graveyard, in order to summon my (3)Turret Warrior(1200/2000)!" the monster Yusei summoned is a tall steep golem, its broad shoulders mounted with a pair of turret-blasters (ATK: 1200), "And due to my Turret's special ability, it now gains the attack points of my Speed Warrior!"

Turrent Warrior: (ATK: 2100)

"Looks like your Wall of Ivy is about to get uprooted!"

"_And_ it looks like another ivy token is about to shoot up on _your_ side of the field!"

"Turret Warrior, attack!" the massive warrior aimed its turrets at the plant and blasted it away.

"By destroying my Wall of Ivy, you've also taken out the Cursed Ivy trap card, and when my Cursed Ivy is sent to the graveyard, it summons two more ivy tokens to your side of the field!" three more ivy infested Yusei's field.

'Man, these things are growing out of control!' Yusei thought.

"You got anything else for me?"

"No. I'm done for now."

"That's disappointing," Akiza started her turn, "I draw! And from my hand, I'm activating the Seed of Deception spell card! This lets me summon one level-2 or below monster from my hand! So with the power of this spell card, I summon out Dark Verger in attack mode!" a large two-leaf fern with a pair of blinking eyes appeared (ATK: 0), "But now I'm gonna do a little landscaping to make room for something stronger! I advance-summon Rose Tentacles in attack mode!" replacing the small plant, a large portal appeared on the ground, bringing out a giant rose bud. Thick, thorny green tentacles spurn from the bottom (ATK: 2200), "The best thing about roses, is that their thorns are as dangerous as their petals are beautiful! And you're about to experience that firsthand! Go, Rose Retaliation!" the giant rose thrust one of its tentacles through Turret Warrior, and skewered it with many thorns growing out of it. Then a huge wind suddenly whips up, to the terror of the crowd.

**Yusei: 3900**

**Akiza: 4000**

"That attack was only the beginning, so get ready for my Rose Tentacles' special ability to squeeze you into submission! Now you take damage for the four ivy tokens on your field! This might hurt!"

("That's some move.")

("So she's gonna attack four times?")

"This is the part of the battle that I enjoy the most, because now I get to watch the power of my Rose Tentacles and ivy tokens bleed your life-points dry!"

MC: _"Incredible! Akiza's managed to plant four ivy tokens on Yusei's field; which means she can unleash a quadruple dose of destruction! And with each attack, Yusei's gonna take six hundred life-points of damage! (Most of the crowds thought it would be a good idea to leave.) Whoa! It looks like the fans are running for the exits! And who could blame them, especially after witnessing the Black Rose's destructive powers in her last two duels! I wouldn't wanna be in Yusei's boots right now!"_

"Let's see if people keep picking on me after THIS! Get ready, Yusei!" Rose Tentacles lashed with one thorny vine, impaling an Ivy Token before wrapping the vine around Yusei's arm. He cringed in pain as the thorns dug into him.

**Yusei: 3300**

**Akiza: 4000**

"Here's one more! Attack!" the monster struck with another vine, shattering another Token and constricting around Yusei's left arm.

**Yusei: 2700**

**Akiza: 4000**

There might even be some fear in his eyes, as shone to the holographic sphere.

* * *

Lazar: "We finally have someone who can push Yusei to his limits. I'm getting some popcorn! Anyone interested?"

Isis: "I'll have mine unsalted, thank you very much."

* * *

Sayer: 'That's right, Akiza. Take all of that loneliness and suffering you've endured. Use it. There's no need to be afraid...'

* * *

"You're not giving in yet? Well maybe THIS'll change your mind!" The third whip lashed and shattered the third Token, before wrapping around Yusei's right leg.

**Yusei: 2100**

**Akiza: 4000**

'I don't even think she _cares_ about winning. There's something else driving her!' Yusei thought as he continued to struggle at the vines, 'I know the world has been cruel to you because of the mark you have, Akiza; but you have to realize that retaliating won't do anybody any good!'

Akiza started panting. Her stamina gets sapped the more frequent she uses her power, "I'm gonna enjoy this... Now ATTAAAAAACKK!" The fourth vine shot forth, taking out the last token, and encircles Yusei's waist and left arm above his duel disk, squeezing tight. The bindings lift him slowly into the air. He continued to strain against the vines, but to no avail.

"Look at you up there, hopeless and alone!" the Black Rose shouted, "No one can help you and no one wants to! Now you know what it feels like to be me in this cruel, cold world!"

Yusei opens an eye and stares at Akiza, and what he saw flabbergasted him! When he looked closer, he spotted a sinister smile on her face!

'She's smiling... She's actually _enjoying_ my pain!-' Yusei was snapped out of his thought, as the vines jerked, and the Rose Tentacles slammed the Satellite hard into the ground!

**Yusei: 1500**

**Akiza: 4000**

MC: _"Whoa! Akiza's attack has the stadium in panic! The place is in complete chaos! Just like we thought, Akiza is-"_

"(A witch!")

("It's true!")

("That girl's a witch!")

("Cheater!")

("She's dangerous!")

As the dust clears, Yusei rose to his feet, grunting and groaning, shaking slightly, legs braced to stay strong.

"Akiza. I want to help you," he groaned as he started his turn, "I wanna be your friend, and I'm gonna use every card I have to prove it to you. And I'll start by playing Shield Warrior in defense mode," the warrior hid behind its giant shield (DEF: 1600), "Next, I place two cards face-down and end my turn."

After setting two reverses, Yusei could see the Black Rose breathing heavily, with that maniacal look still on her face.

"I think I understand it now," he realized, "What makes you tick, Akiza. Because of all that people have put you through... You enjoy it."

"Enjoy _what?_"

"You enjoy people's misery! You like how it makes people feel! You like how it makes you feel."

"...You're right. And for the rest of this duel, I really plan on enjoying myself!"

As Yusei stared down the Black Rose, he could have sworn her eyes flashed blood-red...

* * *

**Meanwhile...**

The final scene alternates back at the Sacred Temple, where Jason Hutchins tried his best to stand his own against his three clones. That last blow took a toll on him, as he struggles to keep standing. The holograph of Rex Goodwin relished every moment of it."

_"That's it. Keep fighting. Battle with everything you got. Soon the amount of duel-energy will stir the Crimson Dragon once again from it's slumber; and its power will rule the world!" _

The endless reaches of the room echoed a pleasant laughter...

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATEBASE**

**(1) Flame Swordsman**

**Stats: [Warrior/Fusion] Level 5 ATK/1800 DEF/1600**

**Attribute: FIRE**

**Fusion Requirements: "Flame Manipulator" + "Masaki the Legendary Swordsman"**

**(2) Fire Princess**

**Stats: [Spellcaster/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1300 DEF/1500**

**Attribute: FIRE**

**Description: Each time you gain Life Points, inflict 500 damage to your opponent.**

**(3) Turret Warrior**

**Stats: [Warrior/Effect] Level 5 ATK/1200 DEF/2000**

**Attribute: EARTH**

**Description: You can Tribute 1 Warrior-Type monster to Special Summon this card from your hand. If you do, it gains ATK equal to the Tributed monster's original ATK.**

**(4) Rose Tentacles**

**Stats: [Plant/Effect] Level 6 ATK/2200 DEF/1200**

**Attribute: EARTH**

**Description: This card cannot be Special Summoned. At the beginning of your Battle Phase, this card gains 1 additional attack this turn for each face-up Plant-Type monster your opponent controls. Each time this card destroys a Plant-Type monster by battle, inflict 300 damage to your opponent.

* * *

**

**Jason: "Now, let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh! 5D's!: I can't believe I fighting for my life against four copies of me! Just what does Goodwin want with the Crimson Dragon anyway? Also, can Akiza break free of this murderous phase of hers? If Yusei couldn't save her, who will? Is it Sayer? Nathan? **_**Who? **_**Find out next time on Stardust Accelerator!"**

**(A/N: I'm thinking of making a special fic staring Yusei and his adventures with the enforcers. I may not write it soon, but that depends. Can you help me? All you have to do in think of a special OC duel-gang and the district the will take charge in. Also, make up a special insignia along with it. That would be great. Thanks.)**

**(P.S.: I'm also thinking of who I could cast as a Dark Signer in my next story. The rules are basically the same. Just vote on which character best suits the role, and then make up you own Earthbound Immortal. The winning four will take center stage in the next story. Thank You.")**

**Please Review.**


	46. Duel of the Dragons: Part 2

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."

* * *

**Ken: Now, let's get up to speed with YuGiOh: 5D's!: While Jason blacked-out and went missing after his duel, Yusei squares off against Akiza! Yusei's warriors made quite a strong start, only to have his field infested with the Black Rose's Ivy combo! That was a setup for her Rose Tentacles, which attacks the more there are plants on her opponent's field, and does damage for every one destroyed as well! After a long barrage of whiplash attacks, she's uprooted Yusei to 1500 life-points! Meanwhile, Jason's having his own problems as well! Battling four clones of himself, he has to face his own Genex monsters, and then some! Can Yusei and Jason beat the odds? Let's hop on, rev it up, and find out!"**

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 43: Duel of the Dragons**

**Part 1: Genex for Real!

* * *

**

Gabriella, Katherine and Kenichi scampered across the interior halls of the KaibaDome looking for Jason. They practically turned the place inside out, but couldn't find him.

"I don't know where Jason could have gone," Ken said, "We looked everywhere; the bathroom, the stands, even the consessions! Now that's the first place he would go!"

"But Jason can't be gone! I swear, if anything bad happened to him I... I..." as Katherine started to cry, Gabriella held her close to comfort her.

"Jason's not going anywhere, Kat. He'll get better soon, and then the first thing he'll do when he gets up is come look for us..." but she was uncertain as well, 'I just hope he's safe, wherever he is...'

* * *

We return to where we last left off: Jason was fighting for his life against three clones of him. Though his score is still higher, he was not fending off too well. He was facing four of his Genex synchro-monsters, and he has no cards on the field. What can he do now?

_"Do not be discouraged, Epsilon," _Goodwin's hologram smiled, _"It will take some getting used to brushing off your expert skills. That was what your created for; to take part in the re-awakening of the Crimson Dragon, so his power will envelop this world..."_

But then, something happened; something Goodwin didn't expect at the moment. Jason laughed. He laughed and laughed, so hard that he felt he would joke.

_"Mr. Hutchins, if you have a good joke why don't you share it," _Goodwin demanded.

"I just find it hard to believe that I'm just some cheap knock-off like those guys..." Jason pointed to his clones, "I'm more real than they are! They can duel like me, but their dueling spirit is in the wrong place! I mean, c'mon! That has got to be funny!" he continued laughing.

_"Do not forget; you are in opposing territory now."_

"Maybe I am, but I don't plan on staying very long," Jason stated as he drew his next card, "There are people outside who needs me!"

_"And why are you so eager to defy your destiny on account of a few people you've only met over this week alone?" _Goodwin asked.

"I have to! I can't explain it, but there's a special bond between me and them. And I'll keep those bonds intact even if I have to sacrifice myself. That's what I believe in; and that's why I duel! Now if you would excuse me, I have a duel to win!"

* * *

**Back at the KaibaDome...**

_"Welcome back to the excitement, ladies and gentlemen!" _the MC announced, _"Akiza appears to have Yusei Fudo right where she wants him! Can he escape the reach of the Black Rose's Rose Tentacles, or will his life-points get squeezed into submission? Let's watch and find out!"_

"Well, Yusei?" Akiza started her turn, "It's my turn, and I activate the continuous-spell Ivy Shackles V2! And with this spell, I can now turn your Shield Warrior into a plant-type monster. Before you know it, Yusei, your entire field's going to look like one giant greenhouse," slender vines wrapped themselves around Yusei's monster, "So with your Warrior now under the control of my Rose Tentacles, she can now attack you an extra time this round. You said I enjoyed other people's misery; well then I guess I should really enjoy _this_, shouldn't I?" Rose Tentacle raised its tentacle for another assault.

'Oh, man. Even though my warrior's in defense mode, he can't protect me from _both_ attacks,' Yusei thought.

"Rose Tentacles, attack! Thrash his Warrior! Go, Rose Retaliation!" the monster lashed out its tendril and destroyed the warrior; the crowd cried out as they were hit with another gust of wind, "Oh, and by the way, my Rose Tentacles' power doesn't stop there. Since your Warrior is under her control, you now take 300 points of direct damage!" after Akiza's rose destroyed Shield Warrior, the plant raised a thick tentacle over Yusei's head and ran it smack-hard across Yusei's back.

**Yusei: 1200**

**Akiza: 4000**

"Akiza, listen!" Yusei cringed, "Don't do this!"

"Huh? Don't do what? Attack you directly?" Akiza asked cynically, "Well I don't do charity!" the Rose Tentacle swings another tentacle at Yusei.

"Then I play _my_ trap- Card Defense! So by removing one of the cards in my hand, my trap's effect cancels your direct attack!" after discarding from his hand, Yusei's reverse-card created a barrier of interconnected duel-monster cards to block the attack, "And then it allows me to draw a new card to replace it!"

"It'll take more than that to stop me!" Akiza boasted.

"Akiza... You have to listen, you can't keep dueling with this anger!"

"Oh yeah? Well until you've battled in _my_ duel disk, save it! I don't need your help!"

"...We'll see," Yusei started his turn, "I summon Junk Synchron!" the orange-armored tuner appeared (ATK: 1300) "And thanks to his special ability, I get to summon another monster from my graveyard! So say hello again to Speed Warrior!" Speed Warrior returned to the field alongside Junk Synchron (ATK: 900), "And now I'm tuning my Junk Synchron with my Speed Warrior to synchro-summon, Junk Warrior!" Junk Synchron and Speed Warrior accessed the synchro-process while Yusei chanted:

"Clustering stars will call upon a new force! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon!"

"Junk Warrior, let's rev it up!" the cobalt knuckle-busting synchro appeared (ATK: 2300), "Next I'm going to activate the equip spell Junk Barrage, which gives my warrior a power boost!" Junk's gauntlet glowed as bright as a lightbulb, "Alright, pal- now attack Rose Tentacles!" the monster's jetpack blazed as Junk Warrior soared across the field and pummeled Rose Tentacle."

**Yusei: 1200**

**Akiza: 3900**

"And now the effect of my Junk Barrage activates! So as soon as my Warrior destroyed your garden-gone-wild, you lose life points for half of Rose Tentacles' attack points!" Junk Warrior posed its glowing gauntlet as it flashed a spotlight over Akiza. The monster then shot a beam of energy at its target. The Black Rose barely flinched.

**Yusei: 1200**

**Akiza: 2800**

"Looks like you're up," Yusei concluded.

MC: _"That was a big round for Yusei- now will Junk Warrior make trash outta the Black Rose?"_

The crowd began to insult Akiza again:

("Take that, you witch!")

("Get her outta here!")

* * *

Leo: "All right! Yusei's got this!"

Dexter: "I know!"

Tanner: "Ya see that combo, gramps? He's on a roll!"

Yanagi: "I prefer a nice bialy."

Luna : 'There's something different about the way Yusei's dueling. It's almost like he's holding back and trying to _help_ Akiza.'

* * *

"You want combos?" Akiza started her turn, "Watch! First of all, since my spell card Ivy Shackles is still in effect, your Warrior becomes a plant-type monster," vines coil around Junk Warrior, "Next up, I'm summoning my Copy Plant in defense mode!" a bundled mass of plant vines appeared (ATK: 0) "And I bet you can guess what its special ability is just from its name. But in case you weren't paying attention, it can copy the level of any other plant monster on the field, and since your warrior is under the control of my rose tentacles, my Copy Plant now becomes a level-five monster!" Copy Plant changed form until it took Junk Warrior's appearance, "And now that I have the tuner monster Copy Plant on my field, I can trigger the special ability of my Dark Verger that's in my graveyard to summon up your destruction, Yusei!" the twin-leafed plant revived from the grave (ATK: 0), "Get ready, 'cause now I can use my monsters for a synchro-summon! I tune my Copy Plant with my Dark Verger to create my ultimate monster..." the plant's synchro-gates surrounded Dark Verger as Akiza chanted:

"Chilling flames engulf the entire world. Pitch-dark flower, set into bloom! Synchro Summon!"

The column of light struck the ground behind the Black Rose, "Get ready to feel the fury of my Black Rose Dragon, Yusei!" the dragon broke out of it, its thorned lashes whip through the air as it appeared, graceful and terrifying in a whirlwind. Its roar pierced many earlobes (ATK: 2400). Yusei's Mark-of-the-Dragon appeared on his arm and he looked at it in shock...

* * *

**Meanwhile, at the Sacred Temple...**

"It's my move!" Jason started his turn, and looked at the card... 'Funny... I don't remember having this card. Well let's see what it can do!' "I summon a new monster, (1) R-Genex Accelerator(1500/1800) to the field in DEF mode!" in a flash of light, a new Genex monster appeared on Jason's field. The monster resembled a large super-collider machine, "And since there's a Genex monster on my field, I can special-summon Omni Genex in DEF mode as well!" an equally-large four-pronged shield colored red, green, blue and yellow appeared next to the Accelerator (DEF: 1000), "Next, I activate Double Summon, and use it to summon (2) R-Genex Crusher(800/800) in DEF mode!" another R-Genex appeared, this one being a large cannon with a face on its barrel, "And since I successfully summoned it to the field, I can add 1 level-3 or below monster from my deck to my hand!" the Satellite showed his opponents Genex Controller before adding it to his hand, "And now Accelerator's ability activates: when a Genex monster is added to my hand from my deck, by a special card effect or by drawing a card, I can special-summon it straight to the field! So say hello to Genex Controller!" the normal Genex tuner joined the group (DEF: 1200), "Now I activate the spell Card of Demise to draw a new hand!" Jason drew five times, "Now Accelerator's effect activates, letting me summon the tuner-monster (3) R-Genex Overseer(100/200)! I'm sure you can guess which position I'll put it in, can you?" the third R-Genex is a violet-armored machine floating on a large hovering platform (DEF: 200), "Finally I park 3 face-downs! You're up!" three cards appeared face-down.

Windmill Genex: (ATK: 5400)

"It is my move," Alpha drew his card...

"I almost forgot! I activate the trap Attribute Synchron!" Jason activated one of his reverse-cards, "Alright. I'm good."

"I attack R-Genex Accelerator with Thermal Genex," the fire-mecha unleashed another flamethrower-attack at its target.

"I activate the trap, Urgent Tuning!" Jason flipped another reverse-card, "During the battle-phase of this turn, I tune Genex-Controller with Omni Genex!" Controller's synchro-gates surrounded the rising Genex shield while Jason chanted:

"Divested stars form into a hidden world of power! Become the new vessel to venture the new frontier! Synchro-Summon! Genex Dragon, Accelerate!"

The armored dragon of the Genexes appeared, gaining power from the Genex monsters resting in Jason's graveyard (ATK: 2800-3400), "And when a a monster is synchro-summoned, Attribute Synchron's effect activates, and for each attribute of non-tuner monster that was used, I can apply the following effects! And since Omni Genex is a light-attribute monster, and is also treated as fire, water, wind and earth, I can activate five effects! First come FIRE, which deals you with 400 points of damage for every level the synchro-monster has! And since Genex Dragon's level is 8, you take 3200 points of damage!" the Genex Dragon threw a larger flamethrower-attack at the Alpha clone.

"I activate the quick-play spell, Poisons of the Old Man! Now I decide whether to inflict 800 points of damage to you, or gain 1200 life-points! I will select the option that increases my own score!" Alpha's spell replenished his life-points before the attack took direct hit.

**D-1: Alpha: 1000**

**D-2: Beta: 5000**

**D-3: Gamma: 4000**

**D-4: Delta: 4000**

**D-5: Epsilon(Jason): 10400**

Jason was disappointed, "Oh well, at least I can use Attribute Synchron's EARTH ability: that destroy a monster for every three levels my synchro-monster has. And now I use Genex Dragon to destroy Thermal Genex!" the dragon slammed its foot on the ground and split the earth in two, sending the fire-mecha falling into the fissure, before closing, "One more! Attack Windmill Genex!" another fissure swallowed the wind-mecha as well, "Now onto WATER! That forces my opponent to discard a number of cards for every 2 levels this monster has! So say goodbye to the cards in your hand J-No. 2!" Beta dis as told as removed the rest of the cards from his hand, "Next comes WIND! And that means for every 2 levels, a spell or trap card gets destroyed!" with a single wingbeat, Genex Dragon summoned a giant gust of wind that exterminated Synchro Blast, Solemn Wishes, Mist Body, and Big-Bang Blow, which forced Geo Genex to vanish into thin air due to the card's effect, "And finally, the LIGHT effect, which gives me 300 life-points per level!" bright stardust rained down on Jason, giving him a total of 2400 life-points.

**D-1: Alpha: 1000**

**D-2: Beta: 5000**

**D-3: Gamma: 4000**

**D-4: Delta: 4000**

**D-5: Epsilon(Jason): 12800**

"I shall end my turn for now..." Alpha simply concluded.

"On to me," Beta started his turn, "I'll set a card face-down and end my turn."

"My turn," Gamma drew, "I'll skip my turn for now."

"My turn," Delta started his turn, "I will skip my turn as well."

"Don't you see now, Goodwin?" Jason said, "Those guys may look like me, but they can't duel like me!"

_"Regardless, you were all created from the same mold. You are just as artificial as they are."_

"Then let's prove you wrong!" the satellite's mark glowed even brighter than before, "Bring it!"

* * *

**Back at the KaibaDome...**

"Get ready to feel the fury of my Black Rose Dragon, Yusei!" Akiza cried as her beast was summoned, "Because as soon as it's summoned to the field, I can activate its special ability! So by taking a plant-type monster from the graveyard and then removing it from play, I can choose one of your monsters and set its attack points to zero! I'll sacrifice Wall of Ivy! It's a small price to pay, to take out all of your Junk Warrior's attack points!" Black Rose Dragon savagely chomped the ghost of Wall of Ivy that appeared in the air before it, before wrapping Junk Warrior in glowing red vines.

Junk Warrior: (ATK: 0)

"Not Junk Warrior," Yusei groaned.

"That tin can's worthless now! There's *nothing* that he can do! Black Rose Dragon attack!" Akiza's dragon fired a blaze of violet fires at the synchro warrior.

"_He_ might not be able to help me, but guess who can! By removing my Shield Warrior from play, I can save Junk Warrior from being destroyed!" after Yusei took the card from the graveyard, Shield Warrior's phantom appeared in front of Junk Warrior to take the hit.

"But you're still going to feel the wrath of my dragon!"

Not if I play this: my Spirit Force!" the Satellite flipped over his reversed trap card. "So now all the damage from your Dragon's attack is negated!" the blast is deflected by a glowing shield around Yusei, and flies in all directions. Parts of it hits the dueling track, and more of the crowd scream and ducked for cover, 'Oh, man, her power's getting out of control! I better finish this duel before someone gets hurt!' "With the power of my Spirit Force, I'm bringing back Junk Synchron from my graveyard!" Yusei showed her the card before adding it to his hand.

"Well let's see what that hunk of junk can do against two face-downs," Akiza concluded.

("You ruined my seats! You have _any_ idea how much they cost me?")

("She's dangerous! Just send her away!")

("No one likes you!")

As the crowd continued to insult Akiza, she continued to sink deeper and deeper into enmity. Her eyes were covered by her hair to hide her hurt.

"Just keep it up. Just keep putting me down," she muttered, "I know it makes _you_ feel good, but now let me show you what makes _me_ feel good. It's time to show you what misery really is. My whole life, I've tried to ignore all the teasing and name-calling. But you can't ignore the pain that it causes forever, Yusei..." she uncovered her eyes, shooting a deranged, maniacal glare, "I'll make them stop!"

'I have to help her before she does something she'll regret...' Yusei thought, 'If I show her that her power's a gift and not a curse, maybe she'll stop causing all this pain!' "It's my move!" Yusei drew his next card, which in particular is an equip-spell... 'Nice. With Prevention Star I can stop one of her monsters from attacking. I'd better hold onto it for later. I got a feeling the big dogs are comin' out soon.' "I summon Junk Synchron in attack mode!" Yusei resummoned the tuner (ATK: 1300), "And thanks to his special ability, Speed Warrior is summoned automatically!" Speed Warrior returned as well (DEF: 400).

* * *

Leo: "All right! And now Speed Warrior's attack points get transferred over to Junk Warrior! That's not just a special ability, that's like a totally-wicked-double-backflip-with-chocolate-sprinkles ability!"

* * *

Junk Warrior: (ATK: 3200)

"Now I tune Junk Synchron with my Junk Warrior!" Junk Synchron rose up and separated into three synchro-gates, and floated down around its synchro counterpart as Yusei chanted:

"Clustering hopes will become a new shining star! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon!"

"Meet my friend, Stardust Dragon!" the synchro tunnel exploded into an emerald torrent, unleashing the mighty dragon...

MC: _"In all my years of broadcasting, I have 'never' seen a monster like this! If you're watching from home, do 'not' adjust your screen! It's as unbelievable as it appears!"

* * *

_

Yanagi: "That's his dragon! That's the card Jack gave 'im!"

Leo: "Wait a sec. why would Yusei bring out a monster that's weaker than his Warrior?"

Luna: "I dunno, it's like he's trying to say something to the Black Rose..."

* * *

**Back at the Sacred Temple...**

"It's my move!" Jason started his turn, "I tune R-Genex Overseer, with R-Genex Crusher and R-Genex Accelerator to synchro-summon Colossal Fighter!" all three machines activated the synchro-process as Jason chanted:

"Divested stars form a timid soul, discovered in the darkest reaches! Unlock the gates to remove the shadows, and create the titan it will become, on its long-forgotten journey! Synchro Summon! Colossal Fighter, Accelerate!"

The silver-synchro arrived on the field (ATK: 2800), "And since there are more Genexes in my graveyard, Genex Dragon gains more power!"

Genex Dragon: (ATK: 4000)

"And now the effect of Attribute Synchron activates! Since Accelerator is a wind-attribute monster, four of your spells and traps are destroyed!" Colossal Fighter pulled back a giant fist and then punched the air hard to unleash a strong gust of wind...

"I activate my trap: Life Equalizer!" Beta activated his set card, "When you life-points are higher than mine, all players are altered to 3000."

**D-1: Alpha: 3000**

**D-2: Beta: 3000**

**D-3: Gamma: 3000**

**D-4: Delta: 3000**

**D-5: Epsilon(Jason): 3000**

All four cards were blown away afterward, including the Life Equalizer card. All that remains was a single face-down...

"And since Crusher's EARTH, I can destroy 4 of your monsters, namely your Hydro Genex and Genex Turbine!" Colossal Fighter buried his fist into the water-mecha and the tank-mech one after another, crushing them both to oblivion, "Now there's no more monster's in the way. Time for full-assault! First I activate the spell Gift of the Martyr! Now I sacrifice Genex Dragon, and give its ATK power to Colossal Fighter!" Genex Dragon dis-armored itself and reformed as a multi-colored apparition, possessing the Colossal Fighter to give it more power.

Colossal Fighter: (ATK: 6800)

"Next, I activate another spell! A powerful one called (5D's) Colossus Comet!" Jason activated yet another card, depicting Colossal Fighter himself, launching itself in a massive energy-based attack, "When Colossal Fighter is on the field, I can pay 500 life-points to give him an extra attack this turn! And since I'm paying 1500, he gets to attack 3 more times!"

**D-1: Alpha: 3000**

**D-2: Beta: 3000**

**D-3: Gamma: 3000**

**D-4: Delta: 3000**

**D-5: Epsilon(Jason): 2500**

"And last, but not least, I activate my final trap card, Bonds!" Jason's trap showed a elongated shadow stretched thorough a long hallway, made by giant black-and-white versions of duel-monster cards(as shown on the dubbed 5D's title card), "During the battle-phase, one of my monsters gain the ATK points of all the monster in my graveyard!" silhouettes of the monsters resting in Jason's grave appeared as Colossal's colored veil glowed even brighter. Shielding his eyes wouldn't help due to his mark glowing even brighter.

Colossal Fighter: (ATK: 17400)

"And that's enough, to take you all down! Colossal Fighter, end this!" the Colossal Fighter expelled heavy, massive shockwaves of duel-energy, swallowing all four Jason-clones, taking Jason himself as well. The Satellite was knocked back many energy-waves. The last thing he saw before blacking out is a giant red dragon appearing out of nowhere, before disappearing just as fast...

His eyes opened later in a small, dark room. He could only see thanks to the crimson light of his mark. It was difficult due the injuries he sustained, hut he got up to open the door to let himself out, ending up in the KaibaDome hallway. It was then he realized he was stuffed in a closet.

"How did I get in there? ...So was it all just a dream?"

"Jason!" the Satellite turned to see Gabe, Kat and Ken rushing towards him. Gabriella clutched onto him with her arms held tightly around his waist.

"We've been looking for you, Jay! Where you been, man?" Kenichi demanded.

Jason looked to see Katherine standing a stone's-throw away from him. He walked up to her and squatted to her length, "Sorry I took so long, Kat-" but what came to him is a hard slap across the face that made him tumble onto his butt. Jason could have sworn he could feel scratch-marks from where Katherine hit him.

"Sorry? We have been searching everywhere for you! And when you finally decided to show up, not to mention all bruised and battered, and all you can say is 'sorry'? Gabe and I thought you were gone forever! We were worried sick, Jason Hutchins!" Katherine was never this livid before. The usually-happe neko-girl releasing searing flames we thought she never had...

But her rage settled. She wrapped her arms tightly around Jason's neck and held on. Tears spilled out of her eyes as she crying, "Don't you ever, _ever_ scare me like that again! We love you too much to lose you!"

Jason gently wrapped his arms around Katherine's wast, returning the hug, "I'm sorry, Kat," he whispered.

* * *

**Meanwhile, out at the arena...**

With a harmonious roar, Stardust Dragon appeared in an explosion of cosmic power, spreading its crinkled wings and sending a rain of stardust across the arena as the majestic dragon soared forth, roaring its power to the heavens (ATK: 2500).

MC: _"Get ready, people! These two dragons are about to do battle!"_

"You brought out that dragon to remind me of all the pain that detestable mark on my arm has caused me! Why would you do that?" Akiza hissed as she clutched her arm, "Do you really believe that because we both have this mark in common you know what I'm feeling and what I've been through!"

"I'm just showing you that you're not as different as you think!" Yusei replied matter-of-factly, "I don't have to be your enemy, I _could_ be your friend."

"Friend? Who says I want a friend! We both have these stupid marks, and no matter what we do we'll always be outcasts. Get it? Our fate is to be alone..." the Black Rose thought back to all the times her powers have caused havoc, "My family... My classmates... Everyone I've ever known, I've hurt! That's why having a friend isn't a choice, it's something that I can never do. And that's why it's so much easier to wear a mask; it's amazing how little you care about other people when you can live behind a wall of plaster and paint, even if it is only the size of your face... And so I dueled with it. I _won_ with it. And I _lived_ with it. Some have said it's time to move on, to show my true face to the world, because maybe then people wouldn't fear my then I could live a normal life, or at least as close to normal as people like us can get. Maybe even have a friend..."

"You _have_ a friend!" Akiza could hear tiny, rapid footsteps running up towards her. She turned her head to see Rico Burst grasping tight on her skirt, "You have to stop what you're doing, Sis!" he cried, "Look, I know it's hard, but you gotta realize that hiding from everyone doesn't help any! Just show everyone how great you are! It'll pay off! I promise!"

"Rico..." Akiza's eyes now show a hint of both hurt and sincerity, "Listen. I know how you feel. I know you want to make me happy... But you heard the crowd, Rico. They don't understand me. 80,000 people are shouting they're afraid of me!"

The boy tugged on the Signer's skirt, "Don't listen to them, Akiza! They don't know what their talking about!"

"I need my mask! Why are trying to help me?"

"Listen to your brother!" Yusei called, "Akiza, you don't have to be alone in this! I know you!"

"You know who?" Akiza bitterly said, "The scared girl? Maybe the face behind the mask?"

"I know what it's like to be the outcast. I'm from the Satellite! You think people here liked what they saw in me? You can't stay afraid! You can't hide behind a mask forever!"

"You're wrong."

'I didn't want it to come to this, Akiza, but you've left me no choice!' Yusei frustratedly commanded his dragon to attack, "Stardust Dragon, attack with Cosmic Flare!" Stardust destroyed Black Rose Dragon with its sparkling breath.

**Yusei: 1200**

**Akiza: 2700**

That was the final straw for Akiza. So she pulled out her plaster mask and held it to her face.

"Don't wear that mask! Don't you dare!" Rico pulled on Akiza's arm, keeping the mask from her face.

"I'm sorry, Rico. But I've already made my decision. I... need the mask. Without it, it's too... easy to be hurt," those sincere words were the last thing that were heard before Akiza yanked her hand back and placed the mask on her face.

("Nice mask, Scardy-Cat!")

("Happy Halloween!")

She now stands before Yusei as the infamous Black Rose.

"Akiza, listen-"

"No! _You_ listen!" Akiza's voice echoed through the Black Rose mask, "It's my move, and I activate Magic Planter V2! So by sending a Continuous Spell card from my field to the graveyard, I can draw 2 new cards!" Black Rose drew twice, "And next I'll play another V2 card: the Continuous Trap, Wicked Rebirth! For the low price of 800 life-points, I can summon any synchro-monster from my graveyard! And I'm bringing back... Black Rose Dragon!" her reverse-card resummoned her malicious dragon (ATK: 2400).

**Yusei: 1200**

**Akiza: 1900**

"But I'm not done yet, because now I can equip Wicked Rebirth to my Dragon!" a giant dark halo floated over the dragon, drizzling it with black stardust, "She might not be able to attack this turn, but as long as she's equipped with this card, Black Rose Dragon can be re-summoned at the end of each and every round! So for those of you in the back of the class, that means if it's ever destroyed in battle, or by some special spell, it comes back as good as new at the end of my turn."

Yusei groaned.

"Oh, and last but not least, when Black Rose Dragon is special summoned, all the cards on the field are destroyed! So say goodbye to your pathetic pet!" the wicked dragon screeched as it summoned a giant whirlwind. Akiza winched at the searing pain her Mark was causing.

'I gotta stop this...!' "I activate Stardust's special-ability! It might be a big price to pay, but sacrificing my dragon destroys yours and all of its powers!" Yusei placed his dragon card into his graveyard slot, "It's a dragon for a dragon!" Stardust Dragon lunged forward, its wings folding around Black Rose Dragon's neck. It began to shine brightly, and Black Rose Dragon goes with it. Both dragons evaporated.

"You may have rid the field of my Dragon, but let's see how you handle Phoenixian Seed!" Akiza summoned her giant red seed onto the field, its giant eye snapping open, "And since we're sacrificing cards to activate special abilities, I'll sow my seed to reap Phoenixian Cluster Amaryllis!" the seed ignited and sprouted to become the botanical phoenix (ATK: 2200), "And before you start in again with 'Don't duel in anger!', let's see if you change your tune after I destroy another one of your monsters! Amaryllis, attack!" the phoenix ensnared the defending Speed Warrior with it's burning vines, scorching it out of existence, "But it doesn't end there, because once Amaryllis attacks, it self-destructs, causing another 800 points of damage- this should hurt a little," the monster exploded, forcing Yusei to weather the hail of razor-brimmed seeds. In the whipping wind, the bottom third of Akiza's mask cracks away, revealing a sinister smile from the bottom half, "Told ya."

**Yusei: 800**

**Akiza: 1900**

"I'll end with a face-down." a reverse-card appeared.

"This round's not even close to being over, Akiza! Remember, I used Stardust Dragon's special ability, and that means he comes back!" Yusei's cosmic dragon returned.

"Well then I guess our two beasts will have to battle it out again! This is the beginning of your end! I re-summon Black Rose Dragon!" a huge column of violet-white light behind her, swarming with black petals formed into the Black Rose, "And with it on the field, I now activate my trap, Overdoom Line. So now the monster I just summoned from my graveyard gains 1000 ATK points (ATK: 3400)! And to keep my Dragon company, I'm activating Amaryllis's special ability, which also allows me to summon it from my graveyard!" the fiery plant returned (DEF: 0), "It's your turn, Yusei."

"I draw, then," Yusei started his turn, "I take my Stardust Dragon, and switch it to defense mode (DEF: 2000). Then I'll activate the spell Prevention Star. And since my Stardust Dragon is in defense mode, I can equip the power of Prevention Star to it. And now I get to prevent one of _your_ monsters from attacking or changing its battle position! And I think I'll freeze up your Phoenixian Cluster Amaryllis!" a bright aura restrained the phoenix plant.

* * *

Tanner: "Awesome! Yusei never would've survived another round with Akiza's Amaryllis still in attack mode! Now let's see if he can turn this duel around!"

* * *

"I play the trap card, Synchro Back! Now by removing one synchro monster from my field, I can resummon it next turn. And who better, than my Black Rose Dragon, Yusei?" Akiza's reverse-card caused the dragon to vanish.

* * *

Yanagi: "What did she do?"

Tanner: "Don'tcha get it, gramps? When she special-summons her dragon next round, its special ability activates, destroying all of Yusei's cards!"

Dex: "Yeah! So she'll take out Yusei's Stardust Dragon, and that'll leave him wide-open for a direct attack! I dunno what he can do to beat Akiza, guys!"

* * *

"I'll end my turn by throwing down a face-down!" Yusei concluded with a reverse-card.

"It won't help you!" the Black Rose started her turn, "Because thanks to my Synchro Back's effect, Black Rose Dragon comes back to the field!" a huge column of violet-white light erupted behind her. The Black Rose Dragon returned, swarming with black petals. As soon as it appears, Akiza groans as her mark pulsed again.

"It's your sign!" Yusei replied.

"I wish it was gone!"

"But it's a part of you! It's part of all of us! Having this mark doesn't make you a witch, Akiza, it makes you special!" the Satellite continued, "I know other people don't see that, and I know it hurts; but when you get angry at them, you're only hating yourself! The pain you feel from that mark is shared by me as well. It's trying to bring us together, to strengthen us! I don't understand it yet, but this pain is somehow uniting us! We have to figure out what it wants, Akiza; but first you must realize that you're not alone! That we're connected, we're all connected! We're all going to have to make a choice. We're going to have to band together in order for this to all make sense! _Embrace_ your dragon; it's beautiful! Just like you are under that mask."

"I'm not beautiful," the Black Rose denied, "People don't like me! And it's this mark that's caused all the suffering I've had to live through!"

"I get what you're saying, Sis! Yusei and I both do!" Rico said, "But taking it out on other people isn't gonna make things any better! Because if you stay mad like this, you'll always suffer"

"So just accept it...? Embrace it...? Forget the past? Hate's all I know!"

Masses of psychic energy caused Akiza's stabilizer to fall out of his hair, releasing her true power! The overdose caused her hair to glow a dark navy-blue color, as well as the Black Rose Dragon's scales. All that energy repelled Rico from the Black Rose as threw him on his rear-end.

"This discussion is over!" Akiza cried, "I activate Black Rose Dragon's special ability! All of your cards are destroyed, along with this stadium!" Black Rose Dragon spread its wings and the wind begins to blow in the KaibaDome once more. The entire audience cowered and desperately searched for cover.

"I won't let you do this! I use my Dragon's special ability! I'll sacrifice him to stop this destruction!" once again, Yusei's dragon lunged forward and body-slammed Black Rose Dragon, holding the monster back.

Rico, quickly recovered, lunged back behind Akiza, wrapping his small arms tightly around her waist, "No! Stop fighting, Akiza! It's over! The dragon inside you was never meant to destroy!" but his pleas fell on the deaf ears of the possessed Black Rose. The condensed psychic energies forced the boy back off Akiza.

Black Rose Dragon itself sensed the disturbance in the mystic link between her and Akiza. The dragon freed herself from Stardust's grip, and set her burning topaz eyes on Rico. How dare that one try to take the girl away, it thought. Akiza belonged to her, mind, body and soul. Only one thing on her mind that could solve that problem. The Black Rose Dragon ignited her maw, and open fire on Rico.

"Look out!" Yusei cried.

But his words could not be heard over the howling winds. The flames drew closer to Rico, and closer to oblivion. But there was one thing that got in the way...

"Jinzo-Lord! Go!" the blast was being deflected by Nathan Turner's ace-monster: the Jinzo-Lord. Nathan himself raced to the rescue and shielded Rico away from harm.

A mighty roar forced the Black Rose Dragon to halt her attack and turn to see her enemy Stardust Dragon as it soared forwards, cloaked in silver energy as it wrapped Black Rose Dragon in an embrace of wings. The murderous dragon angrily whips at Stardust with its vines, trying desperately to break free again, but to no avail. Soon, both dragons fading away to nothing, calming the storm.

"She's gone... Black Rose Dragon's gone!" the Black Rose whimpered, "But that doesn't mean we're finished here, Yusei. Prevention Star's gone, too; which means Amaryllis can now attack. But you still have that face-down, Yusei, don't you! The question is, will it be enough! You've wasted your time trying to save me; now it's time to see if you can save yourself. Let's see if you can stop me!"

"I never wanted to stop you," Yusei replied, "I wanted to save you! And I intend to with Cosmic Blast! Now because Stardust Dragon left the field, you lose life-points for all of its ATK points! You would've seen it coming if you weren't hiding behind that mask!" his reversed trap card flipped over to reveal a ghostly image of Stardust appearing over Yusei, and summoned winds that swirl with black rose petals. It formed a tornado that it wraps its wings around. Violet light poured from behind its wings and exploded. Before the Black Rose knew what hit her, a single piece of shrapnel from the explosion hits her mask right between the eyes, cracking it in two. She fell to her knees, her eyes concealed by her long bangs. Akiza fell to her knees, pieces of her shattered mask raining to the floor as the images of their cards faded away. Her life-points dropped to zero.

**Yusei: 800**

**Akiza: 0**

Yusei was astonished to see that Akiza's eyes were flooded with tears.

"That's right. The Black Rose is crying," she whimpered as she continued to cry.

"Akiza-" Yusei tried to come and help her...

"- Is not your concern," said a frosty voice. Sayer emerged from the stands to defend Akiza, "I think you've caused enough damage for one day, Mr. Fudo. Akiza's coming home with me," Arcadia's leader wrapped his brown trenchcoat around Akiza's shoulders, while Nathan carried an unconscious Rico out of the arena.

"It's okay," Sayer told her kindly, "You tried. Next time, you'll do better."

("All right, she lost!")

("Don't forget your mask!")

Yusei stood alone on the field, quietly triumphant. He gently grasped his still-shining Mark of the Dragon. As Sayer led Akiza out of the arena, Yusei figured it was safe to say that he finally tore down that emotional wall Akiza Izinski had built around her...

_"Thank you, Yusei..."

* * *

_

**DUEL_MON DATABASE_  
_**

**(1) R-Genex Accelerator**

**Stats: [Machine/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1500 DEF/1800**

**Attribute: WIND**

**Description: When a "Genex" monster(s) is added from your Deck to your hand, you can reveal 1 of those monsters to Special Summon that monster.**

**(2) R-Genex Crusher**

**Stats: [Machine/Effect] Level 2 ATK/800 DEF/800**

**Attribute: EARTH**

**Description: When this card is Normal Summoned successfully, you can add 1 Level 4 "R-Genex" monster from your deck to your hand.**

**(3) R-Genex Overseer**

**Stats: [Spellcaster/Effect] Level 2 ATK/200 DEF/100**

**Attribute: DARK**

**Description: When this card is Normal or Special Summoned, you can Special Summon 1 Level 3 or lower "Genex" monster from your hand.

* * *

**

**Yusei: "Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: The time's finally here to settle the score with Jack. But what's the deal with these dragon marks? And why does Goodwin want them so? Secrets are revealed on the next Stardust Accelerator!"**

**(A/N): I'm trying to think of a new leading protagonist on my next story. So if you would help me, that would be great. The only condition is that it must be 'female'.**

**Please Review.**


	47. The Fortune Cup Finale: Part 1

Same disclaimer applied.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback

Distant Communication

(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"

(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."

* * *

In case you readers forgotten, the reason Yusei and Jason entered the Fortune Cup is because Goodwin use his friends as leverage. And speaking of who, we now see them together, but not in a good situation. Ever since Jason left with Yusei to the city, they were captured and locked up in a small metal box. They have no idea where they have been taken. They might as well be at the bottom of the ocean.

"Nnngh! Come on, open up!" Nervin shouted as he tried to pry at the seams of the box. This clearly wasn't the first time they've tried to get out of the undisclosed metal cargo crate they're being kept in.

"Knock it off, Nervin. It's not gonna budge," Tank said annoyed.

"Hey come on, let us outta here already!" Nervin turned to his friends, "Any of you guys see who those thugs were?"

"I couldn't see anything, I was so scared I had my eyes closed!"

"I wish they'd feed us," Rally groaned, "Or at the very least tell us what we're doing in here!"

* * *

The scene alternates back at the city, inside the KaibaDome.

_"Ladies and gentlemen, the most intense duel we've seen so far has roared to a close!" the MC announced, "Yusei has defeated the Black Rose and emerged as the winner! Now he faces off against Jack Atlas in the Fortune Cup finale!"_

Yusei watched as Akiza, still gripping her glowing mark, exit the arena. As Sayer led her out, he glanced at his own mark.

Up in the stands, Luna's mark was glowing as well. The group is looking at it in awe.

"Could it really be?" Yanagi praised, "Luna, you're a Signer!"

"She's a what?" Leo exclaimed.

Yusei pulled back his sleeve to bare his Mark of the Dragon. It stopped glowing, but unlike before, it didn't vanish, instead remaining as an ink-like marking on his skin, "Okay, this is new. Last time this mark vanished. What's going on?" he looked up at the control tower, from which his hawk-eye vision spotted Jack Atlas and Rex Goodwin.

"So now you know who the five Signers are," Jack deducted.

"That's right," Goodwin smiled, "So when you duel Yusei, be sure to push him to his limits. Because the power your Signers' power generates will summon the Crimson Dragon, and unite you all!"

* * *

**Without a trace of memory, Jason Issac Hutchins awakens in the back of a ghetto alleyway. This slum is home to bums and criminals who, exiled from the city, bear an inscription called a 'marker' on their faces.**

**It is there he notices a duel disk attached to his left arm, indicating that he is, in fact a duelist! In days ahead, what kind of destiny awaits him on...**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Ride 43: Duel of the Dragons**

**Part 1: Secrets Revealed

* * *

**

Moments later, Yusei quickly ascending to where Luna, Leo, Dexter, Tanner and Yanagi were sitting at the stands, along with Jason, Gabriella, Katherine and Kenichi, who were descending down the steps.

"Jason, listen. You and Luna need to get out of here!" he said matter-of-factly.

"Yusei! Luna's got a mark, she's a Signer like you!" Yanagi said.

"That's why she and Jason have to leave. Like, _now. _I'm thinking it's dangerous for us Signers to be near each other," Yusei turned to see the damage caused from the last duel, "Look at what happened during my last duel with Akiza."

Ken whistled, "Guess you miss a lot when you're out looking for someone," he took a glance at Jason.

"You know what's going on here, Yusei?" Jason asked.

"I'll tell ya what I find out after I see Goodwin. For now, everyone head toward Blister's place and don't stop for anyone!" with that, he dashes away down the steps.

"Well, you heard the man. Let's get a move on!" Ken said as he went the opposite direction toward the exit.

"I'm sure everything's going to be okay. We had better do what he says, kids," Yanagi insisted the twins and Dexter, "Follow me and stay close behind," the five of them left their seats to join the others.

* * *

As they entered the hallway, they were accosted by several security guards, blocking their path.

"W-what's going on?" Katherine whimpered.

"We in trouble, that's what!" Ken said.

"You weren't planning to leave, were you?" a new voice asked.

"And what if we are?" Tanner scoffed.

Vice-Director Lazar walked in towards them.

"Well, Director Goodwin would like you to stay and enjoy the rest of the tournament," he chuckled.

"Well you tell Goodwin that we're sick of him tellin' people what to do!" even when the former-pro grabbed Lazar by the front of his blazer and lifted him into the air, the clown didn't stop smirking once.

"By the way, Mr. Hutchins. Did you hear from your friends in the Satellite Sector?" Lazar giggled. Tanner, looking stunned, saw exactly where this was going. He roughly dropped Lazar, " I heard that they went missing a few days ago," the Vice-Director scoffed as he straightened his jacket, "I hope nothing bad happens to them. So I think it would be best if you return to your seats _now_!"

Meanwhile, Yusei ran down a hallway toward a couple unsuspecting security guards, in front of a pair of doors leading to the tower.

"Hey, hold it!"

"The Director's not expecting you!"

But Yusei was undeterred by their warning, "Sorry, but he's got some explaining to do!" the Satellite moved almost too fast to see. He dodged under the first guard's punch and took him down with a terrific leaping kick! Then lands a punch on the second, and slammed him hard against the wall! With both guards incapacitated, Yusei pushed open the double doors, and ran into the control tower.

* * *

**Meanwhile...**

Trudge entered the tower to speak to Goodwin.

"Director? Look, sir, there's something I've gotta say," he protested, "It's my official position that you need to stop this tournament."

"I thought your 'official position' was mall security," Goodwin replied, taking a sip of wine from the glass in his hand.

"Very funny. But I feel this tournament is cursed or something! You witnessed the damage of the last duel! I'm concerned things are gonna get worse!"

"Officer, I don't pay you to be concerned."

"But sir-"

"I pay you to do what I say. And as for what you _think_, if I was going to pay someone to do some thinking, it most certainly would not be you. Langley, please escort Officer Trudge out!"

"Is Langley one of the guys guarding the door?" everyone turned to see Yusei Fudo enter the building, "'Cause... uh, he's napping."

"What're you doing up here, punk?" Trudge snarled as the Satellite advances.

"That's enough," Goodwin stood from his seat, beat, clipped and cool, but calm, "How can I help you, Yusei?"

"Before I say... weren't you gonna throw him out?" Yusei gestured to a the frustrated officer, who grabbed Yusei by the lapels. With a single nod from Goodwin, two guards appeared and grabbed Trudge by the arms, dragging him away to the elevator.

"Gaaaaah! That's it, Goodwin! I'm gonna figure out what you're up to! You're going down! You're gonna-"

_SLAM!_

"Time to talk. You forced Jason and me into this tournament. You threatened us and you locked up my friends," Yusei said to the Director, "I wanna know the truth. I'm not dueling Jack until you tell me why you've done this."

"Are you dense, Yusei?" Jack laughed, "It's 'cause of this..." he pulled off his glove to reveal the burned wing-Sign on his arm, "This mark."

Yusei gasped, "So I _wasn't _seeing things before!"

"He wants the Crimson Dragon's power, so he's been trying to gather everyone with its mark!" Jack explained, "He got me here by lying to me and buttering me up and manipulating me!"

"Oh come on, you're making me sound so devious," Goodwin said, "Jack... you wanted to be the Turbo-Duel Champion."

"Yeah, but I wanted to _earn_ that title. At this point... I'm starting to think that you've been rigging everything. I think, your little plan involves setting me up; as bait for Yusei."

The Satellite scowled as he listened.

"Goodwin knew that you would come after me if I did everything exactly as he asked me to. Isn't that right, Director?"

"Don't be ridiculous. I didn't even know about Yusei until you dueled him that night in the arena."

"D'you honestly expect me to believe that this is all some big coincidence? You needed to verify that Yusei had a mark, so you needed him and I to duel, with passion, so you created a situation in which the stakes would be as high as possible..."

_**Flashback, 2 years prior...**_

_None was peaceful in the dark and murky crevices of the Satellite. It looked slightly less decrepit and foggy than it does in the present._

_"Ya can't run forever, half-pint!"_

_"We ain't gonna hurt ya' 'too' bad!" _

_That day, a little boy ran through the ruined streets, chased by a group of thugs. He tripped and fell, one of them raises a club of some sort at him. But a thrown card causes him to drop it._

_"Hey! How did you do that just now?" the leader cringed._

_"Up there!"__one of the punks pointed up above them. Standing on the third story of a destroyed building is none other than Jack Atlas!_

_"You boys are trespassing," he growled._

_"What're ya' talking about?"_

_Jack jumped down the building to approach the thugs, with the boy scampering and hiding behind him, "Nobody steps over that median line."_

_Indeed, there's a white line painted on the pavement that they were now nervously retreating, "Hey, come on, man, be cool. We don't got no beef with you..."_

_"-You do now, my friend!" In a flash of light, Jack activated his duel disk and brought forth his Red Dragon Archfiend. The massive dragon roared in their faces, and they fled in terror._

_After, Rally emerged and started after them, "Haha! Yeah, that's what I thought!" he turned to Jack to thank him, but Jack was nowhere in sight...

* * *

_

_**Later...**_

_After trekking across the streets, Rally finally found where Jack had been staying: an old, abandoned theater. The boy peeked in through a door, and found Jack himself sitting in a throne on an old set. Though the giant hole in the roof shone rays of sunlight, his face was covered in shadow._

_"Hey, Jack! So, this is where you're hangin' out these days, huh? Nice place!"_

_"What do you want?"_

_"I wanted to say thanks, for earlier."_

_"I was just protecting my turf, that's all. Think nothing of it."_

_Rally cleaned an ear contemplatively, then had something else to say, "Yusei just finished building this awesome new duel runner, it's looking really sweet! We're doin' a test-run tomorrow! Uh... hey, you should come! He's gonna try to break the Canal Street record, it's gonna be great!"_

_"..."_

_"Come on! I know you and Yusei had a little falling-out, but it's been months! Can't you guys just shake hands and make up?"_

_"..."_

_"Uh, hello?"_

_"You should get back, before it gets dark."_

_"Yusei won't even tell me what happened."_

_"Nothing happened. It's just... people change, Rally."_

_"Well, okay, but... I just want everyone to get along again... you guys were best friends! Best friends don't just stop being best friends!"_

_"..."_

_" _

_"Well... we'll be in the Canal Street tunnel at noon, if you change your mind. Later, Jack!" Rally ran off, leaving Jack alone once again..._

_Later that night, moonlight shone through the smashed ceiling, fully illuminating the place as though it were day. Jack was asleep on his throne when a strange thumping noise woke his up._

_"Who is that?" he warned, "Show yourself!"_

_"Quite the nice pad you've got here; very spacious," a stranger's voice greeted, "The must-and-mold motif is a brave choice," the stranger stepped out of the shadows behind the throne, showing a short man in a red trenchcoat and clown-like features._

_"Who're you?" Jack growled._

_"Oh, silly me, I forgot my manners. My name is Lazar, Mr. Atlas," he bowed, "and I am here to see you on behalf of Director Rex Goodwin."_

_"That name supposed to mean something to me?"_

_"Director Goodwin would like to extend you an invitation," Lazar replied, "We've been watching you from afar, Jack, and we think you're an incredible duelist. A talent like yours is being wasted out here in the Satellite. You have what it takes to be a champion, Jack. To sit on a real throne as the king of the turbo-duels. Haven't you always wanted to be a champion, Mr. Atlas? Furthermore, haven't you wondered about that mark on your arm?" _

_The Vice-Director chuckled as Jack looked at his arm shocked. _

_"That's right- we know all about it! Tomorrow evening at seven, the Maintenance Department will shut down the flow in the main pipeline for one hour," Lazar sat on Jack's throne as he continued, "We'll be waiting for you on the other side, Mr. Atlas. However, we do require that you bring one thing with you. We've heard there's another duelist here, some up-and-coming hotshot."_

_Jack knew exactly who he was talking about, "We don't know much about him, other than that he uses the Stardust Dragon card. But some say *he* has what it takes to be the best. You need to find him, and get his Stardust Dragon card. Think of it as your ticket to a new life. And believe me, Director Goodwin *can* give you a new life, Jack. No one will know you're from the Satellite. You'll be a respected resident of New Domino City. You'll have screaming fans, you'll attend fancy parties. But hey, if you want to dwell in the slums and live with the cockroaches all your life, you're welcome to do so."_

_Jack looked down; one is indeed crawling by his foot. But when he looked back up, Lazar was no longer there._

_But his voice echoed across the empty theater, "The choice is yours, Jack, what's it going to be?"

* * *

_

_The next day, the Satellite was misty and grim as ever. Jack stood alone on a rooftop, gazing at New Domino City in the distance across the sea, when Rally approached him._

_"Hey, Jack. Um, why are we meeting up here?" he asked._

_"I think I'd like to come watch Yusei's test-run after all."_

_"Really? Well then let's get going!"_

_"Sure, but... I need help with something first."_

_Rally's face brightened, "Whatever ya need, Jack, 'cause I still owe you one from before!"_

_"Yes... you do," Jack jumped down and walked to the boy, "And now you're gonna pay me back ten-fold," he then took out a taser and stunned Rally, letting him collapse against him...

* * *

_

_**Meanwhile...**_

_Yusei was back in the subway station with his friends Nervin, Blitz and Tank. They were helping Yusei make adjustments to his first duel-runner._

_"Where's Rally?," Blitz asked, "He'll be bummed if he misses Yusei test out his new duel-runner."_

_"When he headed out earlier, he said somethin' about goin' to meet up with Jack," Tank answered._

_"He went to see Jack? What a traitor!" Nervin stated._

_"Come on. Rally can hang out with whoever he wants to hang out with," Yusei said._

_"Yeah, but what about loyalty?"_

_Yusei closed the hood, no sooner had he than the radio rang and Jack's face appeared on the screen, whom they were all surprised to see, "Some east-side thugs just ran off with Rally."_

_"They did WHAT?" Yusei hopped onto his runner and he and his friends mobilized out in a heartbeat._

_They split up on opposite sides of town. Nervin, Tank and Blitz searched the market but couldn't find Rally._

_Yusei searched along the street downtown, when his radio rang again. Jack reappeared on screen, "Yusei, I found him. Come down to the waterfront right away."_

_"Huh?"

* * *

_

_Moments later, Yusei made it to the pier where Jack was standing at, watching the waves crash against it. After he parked, Yusei rushed up to him._

_"Where is he, Jack?"_

_"He's out there," Yusei looked to where Jack pointed and spotted Rally a distance away along the bumpy waves. He was tied up and placed in a boat, "The tide's still going out; he could be swept out to sea! And then there's that big stormfront approaching..."_

_"Jack, what is he doing out there?" Yusei demanded._

_"I guess there's no reason to keep on lying to you," Jack looked at Yusei, "I put him out there."_

_"Out there?" Yusei gasped in disbelief, "But Jack, Rally's your friend!"_

_But Jack ignored him, "Know what people are saying? That you've got what it takes to be the best. But we both know that's not true, don't we, Yusei?"_

_"What're you saying?" Yusei wondered._

_"You can either duel me and prove yourself, or you can swim out there and save Rally. What'll it be?" Jack pointed back to the sea, "What's more important to you, provin' that you're a true duelist? Or are you willing to put dueling aside to help your little friend?" Jack shot daggers at Yusei, "What're you made of?"_

_Without hesitation, Yusei threw off his jacket and dove into the strong waters, swimming out toward Rally._

_'Pathetic. You don't deserve to have Stardust Dragon,' Jack picked up Yusei's deck-box out from inside Yusei's abandoned jacket, pulled out the Stardust Dragon card, slipped it in his pocket and let the others drop at his feet, 'Time for that test run...' finally, Jack took of on Yusei's runner and headed straight toward the pipeline._

_Meanwhile, Rally's boat pitched him overboard and he began to sink. He almost ran out of oxygen when Yusei grabbed him and re-surfaced, gasping for air. Yusei carried the boy back onto the dock, dripping, and picked up the abandoned deck box. He looked at it for a moment, then puts it in the space at the small of his back._

_"Man, this is all my fault," Rally said apologetically as he gave Yusei his jacket, "I'm so sorry."_

_Yusei said nothing. He just accepted his jacket, patted Rally on the back and accompanied him back home._

Jack: "Goodwin could never have made you the same offer, because you would never have left your 'friends' behind. Not for fame and fortune, anyway. I, on the other hand, walked right into it, and by tricking me into taking your card, he gave you a reason to come after me..."

_**...End Flashback.**_

Jack placed his glove over his arm again, "And I think that brings us all up to speed, more or less," he turned to Goodwin, "I have a demand to make."

The Director paid attention.

"You got what you wanted; he's here, right? Let his friends go, he doesn't need to be coerced. I want this duel to be legit; no threats, no gimmicks, just us."

"If that is what my champion wants...," Goodwin replied sincerely, raising his wine glass, "then so be it."

* * *

In the cargo container, Rally heard a click and looked up. He ran over and pushed on the door as it gave way, "No way- it's open."

"Stop joking around," Nervin insisted.

"Blitz and Tank crowded toward the door as well, and the four of them end up tripping over each other and spilling out of the container into the open.

"Anybody know where we are?" Rally asked.

They stood in the middle of some sort of dump. Rally, Nervin, and Tank stand up as they heard a distorted voice. By some crazy coincidence, or nothing of the kind, there was a desktop-size monitor lying on the ground, tuned into the Fortune Cup!

_"The time has come!"_ The MC in the TV yelled, _"The final showdown is about to begin! Satellite's very own Yusei Fudo has won the chance to take on Jack Atlas!"_

"Yusei is dueling Jack?" Tank exclaimed.

"When did this happen?" Blitz asked curiously.

"Hey, look- look at his face!" Nervin pointed to where the say Yusei's face.

"They marked him!" Rally exclaimed.

"Guess you miss a lot when you're locked up!"

* * *

Back at the KaibaDome, Yusei rides up to the starting block of the track. On his runner screen, Yusei saw an image of Rally, Blitz, Tank, and Nervin, crowded around the video screen, "They're okay."

_"Are you happy?" _Jack suddenly appeared over the previous feed,_ "You finally get a chance to settle the score with me."_

"I guess so..."

* * *

Backstage, Jack prepared for his long-awaited match, until Mina arrived and gave Jack his helmet.

"You know, for what it's worth, big setup or not, I still think that you're an incredible duelist, Jack."

"Of course I am."

* * *

Ontop of the stands, Sayer returned to observe the final battle, 'So you're really going to try and summon the Crimson Dragon. This should be interesting...'

* * *

Back at the track, Jack met up with Yusei to the starting line, staring at him eye-to-eye, "This is it! I'm finally gonna show you that you don't have what it takes to be the best, Yusei, you never have!"

"Are you sure we should be doing this right now, Jack? There's still a lot we don't know about the Crimson Dragon."

The king laughed, "This is exactly what I'm talking about! You have no guts, Yusei, you ain't got no balls! You never wanna take any risks! Don't tell me you came all this way just to chicken out?"

"...No way."

_"Alright! It's time to activate... the Speed World field spell!"_ the MC announced.

_"Duel Mode engaged... autopilot standing by...,"_ The purple aura of Speed World engulfed the stadium as the two Duel Runner displays changed.

_"This is the moment; will Jack Atlas continue to reign as the king of turbo-duels? Or will he be de-throned by Satellite Shooting Star? It's time to find out!"_

_"Countdown initiated. Ready... set... Duel!"_

The moment the countdown hits green, the two runners dash off so fast the wheels appear to turn white with heat. The crowd goes wild.

**Yusei: 4000 (0)**

**Jack: 4000 (0)**

"Admit it, Yusei; the roar of the crowd is more appealing than the scamper of the rats," Jack teased.

"Let's just duel," Yusei drew his sixth card, "I'm summoning out my (1) Shield Wing(0/900) in DEF mode!" the monster Yusei summoned was a green dragonoid creature. It folded its wings in front of itself for protection, "Next I place two cards face-down and end my turn!"

"In that case..." Jack began his turn, "I summon (2) Twin Sword Marauder(1600/1000) in ATK mode!" the King summoned a black-fitted warrior. A trio of blade extended from each gauntlet, "You may have just scrapped your way to the title match, but those other duelists were just amateurs compared to me! Now allow my Twin Sword Marauder to give you a proper welcome to the big leagues, Yusei!" the warrior advanced and slammed its blades into the dragon. Though Shield Wing was in DEF mode, Twin Sword Marauder's ability inflicted piercing-damage.

**Yusei: 3300 (2)**

**Jack: 4000 (2)**

"You haven't grown a bit as a duelist since the days of riding around in the sewers!" Jack said, "I can still anticipate your game and stay two steps ahead of you!"

"Then you should know that Shield Wing can't be destroyed in one attack! It has to be defeated twice!"

"I do know that. And when Twin Sword Marauder attacks a monster in defense mode, it can attack again!"

Yusei gasped.

"I said that I was _two_ steps ahead of you, Yusei, not just one! Go! Double Marauder Mayhem!" once again, the marauder slammed its blades against Shield Wing, with the same result.

**Yusei: 2600 (2)**

**Jack: 4000 (2)**

"And to end my first turn, I place one card face-down," a reverse-card appeared, and then  
Jack looked over his hand, 'I already have in my hand the card that will lead me to victory, and settle this matter once and for all!' "You can't defeat me, Yusei!"

"We'll see, Jack!" Yusei started his turn, and looked at the card, which is a trap, 'Meteor Stream. Jack might be expecting this since I beat him with it before. So I'd better hold off on using it, for now.' "From my hand I summon Junk Synchron!" Yusei's recyclable tuner appeared (ATK: 1300) "And now I'm gonna tune my Junk Synchron with my Shield Wing, in order to synchro-summon Junk Warrior!" Junk Synchron pulled his ripcord and started the synchro-process as Yusei chanted:

"Clustering stars will call upon a new force. Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Show yourself, Junk Warrior!"

Junk Warrior burst from the Synchro Summon, punching the air (ATK: 2300), "Now take out that Marauder!" boosted by his jetpack, Junk Warrior flew forward and pummeled the marauder.

**Yusei: 2600 (3)**

**Jack: 3300 (3)**

"Next I activate my trap card, Synchro Blast! Now when my Warrior attacks, Synchro Blast can slam you with 500 points of damage!" the continuous-trap dealt damage to Jack.

**Yusei: 2600 (3)**

**Jack: 2800 (3)**

"_Now_ you're dueling, Yusei..." Jack started his turn, "But you won't be for long! Because from my hand, I summon (3) Dark Tinker(1000/1300)!" a hideous spider-like creature appeared, arrying a tool in each of its long appendages (ATK: 1000), "Then I activate the Powerful Rebirth trap card! And with this card, I can re-summon Twin Sword Marauder from my graveyard!" the continuous-trap opened a portal to revive the twin-bladed warrior.

* * *

Tanner: "Alright, Dark Tinker is only level-3, and that Sword Marauder is a level-4!"

Ken: "And that means he don't have the power that he needs to summon that Red Dragon Archfiend!"

Katherine: "This is your chance, Yusei! Go get 'im!"

* * *

"Now the monster resurrected by Powerful Rebirth gains 100 ATK and DEF points, and its level increases by 1!"

Twin Sword Marauder: (Lv: 5/DEF: 1100)

"What?" Yusei gasped.

Katherine: "Oh no!"

Ken: "Here come the big-bad Red Dragon!"

* * *

"Yusei, I'm the best turbo-duelist New Domino City has ever seen; and that move I just made was one more example of why _I'm_ the champ, and now I'm going to show you why I'm gonna _remain_ a champ!" the tinker separated into three gates and surrounded the warrior. All the while, Jack chanted:

"The ruler's heartbeats will now file through here! Take witness to its creation-shaking power! Synchro Summon! My very soul, Red Dragon Archfiend!"

With an almighty roar, Red Dragon Archfiend soared from the Synchro Summon, talons clenching, wings expanding and hellfire howling from its maw (ATK: 3000).

'...Back in the Satellite, I knew that to realize my full potential, to climb up from the bottom of the world, I had to throw away everything. I had to turn my back on the Satellite. On my friends. Nothing was more important to me than being the best!' the King shot a deathly glare at his once-best-friend, 'But now here _you_ come, and you're trying to take _me_ down? You're not a real duelist; you haven't had to sacrifice anything! You always put dueling second! Well I'm finally going to put you in your _place!_'

The hellish Red Dragon Archfiend hovered over his new victims, awaiting the order from his master to strike. The true battle is about to begin...

* * *

The final scene alternates in a place in the depths of Satellite that no one dare to wander. Bored in the destructive street wasteland was a giant crater. It depth stretched for what seemed an eternity down, with no bottom in sight.

The walls alongside the hole was braced by a long spiral staircase, leading to various passages. Each one leads to a hallway, lined up with many prison-cells. Darkness plagued everywhere.

In one cell, sat a lonely young woman hunched in a corner. Her beautiful face hides behind her folded legs and her flowing golden-blonde hair.

A clicking sound was heard as the door was unlocked. It opened to reveal a tall hulking figure. Nothing else could be described due to the consuming darkness.

"Come, little one," the figure's dark voice echoed, allowing the girl to reveal her crystal-blue eyes and her adorable pink blushes, "It's time for the initiation..."

* * *

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Shield Wing**

**Stats: [Winged-Beast/Effect] Level 2 ATK/0 DEF/900**

**Attribute: WIND**

**Description: Up to twice per turn, if this card would be destroyed by battle, it is not destroyed.**

**(2) Twin Sword Marauder**

**Stats: [Warrior/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1600 DEF/1000**

**Attribute: DARK**

**Description: Once per turn, after this card attacks a Defense Position monster, it can attack once more. During battle between this attacking card and a Defense Position monster whose DEF is lower than the ATK of this card, inflict the difference as Battle Damage to your opponent.**

**(3) Dark Tinker**

**Stats: [Fiend/Effect] Level 3 ATK/1000 DEF/1300**

**Attribute: DARK**

**Description: When this card you control is sent to the Graveyard, look at the top card of your Deck. Return that card to either the top or the bottom of the Deck.

* * *

**

**Jason: "Now let's see what's up ahead on the next YuGiOh 5D's!: The match between Yusei and Jack is about to come to a close! Who knows how it'll turn out! This might as well be their greatest battle ever! Check out the final chapter of Stardust Accelerator!"**

**Please Review.**


	48. The Fortune Cup Finale: Final Ride

**Same disclaimer applied.**

**"Talking"**

**'Thinking'**

**Flashback**

**Distant Communication**

**(Person 1/ person 2) "In unison/in unison"**

**(5D's) "This symbol indicates the card is created by yours truly. All rights go to me."**

**(A/N): "This last chapter, I'll make it into a Song-Fic. All rights of the song goes to Kra."

* * *

**

**Jason: Now let's ger up to speed with YuGiOh! 5D's: After the match with Akiza Izinski, Yusei finally realized his Signer mark! So it's time to find answers from Goodwin! He then learned from Jack that he didn't exactly leave the Satellite on a whim; he was actually invited by Goodwin in exchange for bringing Yusei's Stardust Dragon card. So he kidnapped Rally and sent him out to sea, knowing Yusei would put his friends ahead of his own cards. While the duel went underway, Yusei held his ground pretty well. But when Jack brought out his Red Dragon Archfiend, the real battle has just started! Can Yusei prove his worth and defeat the Master of Faster? Let's hop on, rev it up, and find out in this explosive Season Finale!"**

**Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's**

**Stardust Accelerator**

**Final Ride 45: The Fortune Cup Finale**

**Part 2: Stardust Dragon, Accelerate!

* * *

**

_"Welcome back to the Fortune Cup finale, where the Master of Faster Jack Atlas already has a commanding lead!"_ the MC announced, _"Can the Satellite Shooting Star Yusei Fudo catch up? Or will this be his final lap? Let's watch and see!"_

Luna looked up at the sky and gasped, "What's that?"

Everyone else looked and saw that the skies were ominously clouded over.

"I don't think the forecast called for scary purple clouds!" Leo said, scared.

"It's... a sign...!" Yanagi whimpered, "The Crimson Dragon is coming! And if he's coming then we should all get going!"

"Take it easy, gramps. I mean, it's probably just some acid rain drifting in from the Satellite," Tanner assured.

* * *

**Inside Goodwin's private box...**

"It's the sign we've been waiting for," Goodwin said, pleased at the dark clouds, "Soon the Crimson Dragon will awake from its long slumber."

"Um, just one question about all that," Lazar said to Goodwin, "I thought we needed _five_ Signers, no? At this point, we just have the four: the little girl, Akiza, Yusei, and Jack. Besides, are we even sure we can control the Dragon's power once it's been summoned? Perhaps Trudge had a point..."

_**Flashback...**_

_"Director? Look, sir, there's something I've gotta say," he protested, "It's my official position that you need to stop this tournament."_

_"I thought your 'official position' was mall security," Goodwin replied, taking a sip of wine from the glass in his hand._

_"Very funny. But I feel this tournament is cursed or something! You witnessed the damage of the last duel! I'm concerned things are gonna get worse!"_

_**...End Flashback.**_

"Lazar, don't you trust me? You see, I know the fifth Signer."

"Oh. That's cool. If you know, then I'll just watch this match and rela-," but realizing what he just heard, the Vice Director gasped, "Wait, you know? Who is it? Ah-are they here? How exciting! Then that means we can unlock all of its power!"

"That's right, Lazar. But first, we must see if we can harness the immense power the Crimson Dragon's summoning will create."

* * *

**Back at the duel...**

"It's time to put you in your place, Yusei! And by the way: since _my _Dark Tinker is a V2 monster, I get to draw 1 card from my deck!" Jack announced as drew his card, and then he twisted his duel-runner 90-degrees, facing his opponent, "Red Dragon Archfiend! Send that Junk Warrior back to the scrapheap! Go, Absolute Powerforce!" the red dragon plowed its scorching claws into the recyclable warrior and destroyed it.

**Yusei: 1900 (3)**

**Jack: 2800 (3)**

Then Jack turned his runner back forward, "Finally, I throw down 3 face-downs and end my turn!"

"It's my turn, Jack!" Yusei started his turn, "And It's time I even up the playing field! First I activate my trap, Descending Lost Star! This lets me summon a monster back from my graveyard in DEF mode, as long as I lower it one level, and its DEF points to 0. So now by powering down my Junk Warrior, I can then bring it back out to my field," Junk Warrior returned to the field (DEF: 0) Then I summon the tuner-monster, (1) Hyper Synchron V2(1600/800)!" a portal opened and released a small, bulky robot. It had crimson armor and a yellow metal torso. On its back a winged jetpack was equipped (ATK: 1600), "And now I tune Junk Warrior with my Hyper Synchron, in order to synchro-summon Stardust Dragon!" the machine opened its chest to release four synchro-gates. They surrounded Junk Warrior as Yusei chanted:

"Clustering hopes will become a new shining star! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Take flight, Stardust Dragon!"

In a flash of power, Stardust Dragon exploded from the synchro-jet (ATK: 2500). Then the Marks on Yusei, Jack, Luna, Akiza and Jason started glowing.

"Welcome to the party, Stardust," Jack greeted the dragon with a smile.

Back at the stands, Katherine spotted Gabriella clutching her own bandaged arm...

MC: _"This is the moment we've been waiting for! So get ready, 'cause these two beasts are about to battle it out! It's Dragon vs. Dragon!"_

In the research center, Zixzix monitored the entire duel through the D-Tector. The generator was overflowing with energy, "Incredible! Director, are you getting all this? The readings are off the charts!" he laughed dramatically, "THE CRIMSON DRAGOOOON... _is here_!"

**Back at the duel...**

"And now, Hyper Synchron's special ability activates!" Yusei called, "You see, Jack, when it's part of a synchro-summon, the new monster gets an extra 800 ATK points! So now my Stardust Dragon's got 3300!" as the spirit of Hyper Synchron entered Stardust's body, the dragon roared with its new power-up.

Stardust Dragon: (ATK: 3300)

"Well then I guess I'll play my trap card: Tuner Capture!" Jack flipped one of his face-downs, "This enables me to take control of the monster you used to make your synchro-summon happen. What goes around comes around, Yusei!" Yusei's tuner was summoned to Jack's side (ATK: 1600).

MC: _"Whoa! While Yusei's Hyper Synchron goes Benedict Arnold, Jack out-monsters him two to one!"_

"Well then, Stardust Dragon, why don'tcha even up the playing field!" Stardust took a deep breath for an attack.

"Come on! That pathetic dragon's no match for me and my deck!" Jack laughed, "I trigger the trap card Tuner's Mine! And this is just one example of why I'm the Master of Faster, and you're a worthless wannabe! Now I can de-tune my Dragon to double my defense," Red Dragon Archfiend separated its fearsome body into Dark Tinker and Twin Sword Marauder (DEF: 1300/1000), forcing Yusei into Replay.

'Oh, man. If I don't take out 'is Twin Sword Marauder, he'll just use it to bring out his Red Dragon Archfiend all over again next round. Guess that leaves me just one thing to do... ' "Stardust Dragon! Attack Twin Sword Marauder with Cosmic Flare!" Stardust fired on the warrior, but its attack was intercepted by Dark Tinker, destroying it instead, "No way!"

"Surprise, surprise! Y'see my trap forces you to attack my Dark Tinker. When're you gonna learn that you'll never be a match for me, Yusei? I'll beat you in front of the whole world, just like I beat you way back in the Satellite."

"Well that was then and this is now! Go, Synchro Blast!" Yusei's trap blasted Jack with more damage.

**Yusei: 1900 (5)**

**Jack: 2300 (5)**

"Thanks to that trap card, when any synchro monster like my Dragon attacks, you automatically lose 500 life-points!"

"The difference between us is that I can afford it! Now I can draw another card!" Jack drew once.

"It won't help you, Jack."

"Oh really, Yusei?" Jack started his turn, "I tune Hyper Synchron with Twin Sword Marauder, in order to synchro-summon Red Dragon Archfiend one more time!" the dragon cast its shadow over Yusei as it stretched its arms. It greeted once more with a fearsome roar (ATK: 3000), "Let's kick this turbo-duel into overdrive," Jack's runner skid backwards, "And just like Hyper Synchron added 800 ATK points to your dragon, now that it's helping me with my synchro-summon, I get to reap the benefits of its power as well. And remember, after I win this, your Stardust Dragon is mine!" Jack's red dragon powered as well.

Red Dragon Archfiend: (ATK: 3800)

"Ready?"

"Bring it!" Yusei challenged.

"Consider it brought!" when Red Dragon Archfiend made a fiery clash at Stardust, Yusei's dragon separated them, without even a scratch; except for Yusei's life-points, of course.

**Yusei: 1100 (6)**

**Jack: 2300 (6)**

"It looks like you forgot that, since Hyper Synchron was used, neither dragon can be destroyed now!" Yusei said.

"Good thing I've got this, then! My trap Field Cannon!" as soon as Jack activated his reversed continuous-trap, it hit Yusei with a blast of energy, "Now you lose 500 life-points, 'cause I couldn't destroy your monster!"

**Yusei: 600 (6)**

**Jack: 2300 (6)

* * *

**

Leo: "Yusei, no!"

Tanner: "This isn't good. Yusei'd better think of something, fast."

Yanagi: "I couldn't agree with ya more, Tanner! Especially with those clouds circling around like that!"

* * *

Sure enough, the dark, murky-grey clouds were indeed swirling with downright unnatural menace. As everyone looked up at the skies, huge red flashes of lightning begin shooting out of the clouds, and form into one huge bolt that struck through the holographic sphere, and separates the two battling dragons.

"Here it comes," Jack said.

"The Crimson Dragon!" Yusei gasped.

The lightning resolved itself into a familiar shape, forming into one pair of wings, two pairs of claws, a barbed tail, and a fearsome lizard's head. The Crimson Dragon has appeared, bellowing a ringing cry.

_"I see it, but I do not believe it!"_ the MC replied.

("It's a third dragon!")

("Hold on, who summoned that thing to the field?")

* * *

"The Crimson Dragon! It's...huge...!" Yanagi cried.

And since then, the sensation on Gabriella's arm worsens.

"Your arm's hurt, Gabe!" Katherine said, worried for her sister, "We need you to get help! _Now_!"

"It's just a little scar; there's nothing to warry about," Gabe assured.

* * *

Somewhere over the stands, David witnessed the phenomenon unfolded, "This is getting interesting..."

* * *

Even Sayer looked thunderstruck, his eyes twitching uncontrollably, "It can't be... They actually awakened you?"

* * *

"Crimson Dragon, welcome to my arena!" Jack greeted the dragon, "Now watch and witness how your future master rules this duel!"

"Jack! Be careful! The Crimson Dragon might rip this place apart and everyone in it!" Yusei warned.

"Don't tell me you're scared. I am a Signer, Yusei Fudo, and this is my destiny!" the Master-of-Faster boasted, "Goodwin told me that the power of the Crimson Dragon will help me save this world!"

'And it shall, Jack. But you will not fight the darkness that is coming alone,' Goodwin replied in his mind, 'Legend says that once all five Signers are gathered, the future can be revealed. So with the power _I_ possess as the fifth Signer, I will now show you what our enemy plans!'

* * *

Somewhere else, in a dark chamber of some sort, stood a glowing capsule filled with liquid. The tube contained inside a severed forarm, decorated with crimson marking symbolizing a dragon's head. The light inside glowed brighter.

* * *

All the responding Marks of the Dragon reacted! Yusei and Jack looked at theirs, while Luna and Jason. The Crimson Dragon roared and howling winds whip up, obscuring everyone's view. It then swooped down, and grabbed the two duelists in its claws. The beast rose into the sky over the stadium, shining brilliantly as it spreads its wings with an unearthly cry...

* * *

When the white light faded, Jack, Yusei, Stardust, and Archfiend were racing along a shining white path on their runners, surrounded on all sides by stars and an empty night sky.

"Where are we?" Yusei wondered.

"Beats me," Jack replied, glancing around the world that had appeared. Behind them, three spheres of crimson light glided along the light road, one containing Luna, the other Jason, and the third, Akiza. The five Signers were gathered into one place, but somehow that fact was outweighed by the power this mysterious road of light seemed to hold.

"Where's the stadium?" Luna cried, "What's going on?"

"That's what I'd like to know..." Jason answered, looking around in wonder at this cosmic track.

Above them, a fiery crimson star appeared, the mighty Dragon Star. Below, the mountains came into view, containing the Stairway to the Dragon Star, which looked as if they had been built the day before. Numerous worshipers bowed down to the temple as five people stepped into view on top.

"Yusei, they look exactly like the People of the Stars!" Jack deducted.

"What are _they _doing here?" Yusei wondered again.

The five bore the Marks of the Dragon upon their arms, the five marks shining just as brightly as those upon the arms of the current five Signers above.

"Hey, Jack! They're all Signers!"

"Like us! Goodwin told me about these people! He said somehow we're all linked to the Crimson Dragon!"

As the Signers flew over the shrine, they next approached...

"Down there looks a lot like the Satellite, Jack."

As they looked down at it, purple fire erupted from the concrete earth. With unnatural precision, the flames formed a pattern...

"Look there! Is that a giant spider surrounding the Satellite?" Akiza pointed to the ruined city. Surely, the purple flames below them have been drawn as a glittering violet spider.

"I can't believe this is happening!" Yusei forsaken the vision, "We have to stop it!"

"It can't be real...!" Jack said, "Perhaps it's the future!"

"Well if that's the future then we'd better stop this duel right now! We gotta get home!"

"We will... once we finish this."

"What?"

"Yusei, this is a duel! The Crimson Dragon won't let either of us go back until one of us wins!"

"Come on!"

"Don't you get it? Dueling brought us here and dueling's gonna bring us back home! And whoever wins will show the Crimson Dragon they deserve the power to save the world! And I'm gonna be that person!" Jack sets two reverse-cards and two reverses appeared, "I throw down two face-downs!"

"You're nuts!" Yusei groaned frustratedly as he started his turn, "But if you wanna keep dueling, you'll get more than you bargained for, Jack! I just activated Silver Contrails!" the Satellite activated a speed-spell onto his disk, "It gives one thousand more attack points to any Wind monster on my field! And guess what my mighty beast is!"

Stardust Dragon: (ATK: 4300)

"Stardust Dragon, attack Red Dragon Archfiend and take us home!" Stardust Dragon roared, unleashing the blast of white fire from its maw. Jack cried out in pain as the sparkling flames licked at him.

**Yusei: 600 (7)**

**Jack: 1800 (7)**

'That attack... I can feel it! Like it was real!' Jack realized just now, 'I guess the Crimson Dragon wants Yusei and I to play for keeps! Well that's just fine by me!"

"Next I activate my trap, Synchro Blast!" Jack screened again as he took the damage from Yusei's continuous-trap.

**Yusei: 600 (7)**

**Jack: 1300 (7)**

And you thought I had short memory," Jack said, short of breath, "Since Hyper Synchron helped summon both our dragons out, neither one can be destroyed in battle!"

"I'll throw down 3 face-downs and end my turn!" three reverses appeared on Yusei's side.

'3 face-downs? Looks like Yusei's makin' his big move...'

_(Music begins; mic solo)_

'Too bad it's too late! No matter what he's got hidden, my speed-spell will destroy it!' Jack's spirit of both his Mark and his Red Dragon Archfiend stired in his heart as he kicked into overdrive! "Here we... GO!"

**_Donna ni harareta'tte togireru koto wa nai sa_**

**_Yori fukaku e kizamareteyuku _**

(No matter how far we are apart, I'll still go on.

I'm going to engrave it even deeper.)

Jack started his turn, "I can't slay your dragon, but I can still take out your life-points! Go, Red Dragon Archfiend! Attack!" when the two dragons strike, the stalemate took a tool on Yusei's life-points as he cried out.

**Yusei: 100 (8)**

**Jack: 1300 (8)**

"He's really hurt!" Akiza said, "It's just like when _I_ duel people!"

"What was that?" Yusei wondered, "I could feel his attack!"

"That's right, Yusei," Jack replied, "This duel is winner-take-all! and now you'll see what it's like to duel with more than just your life-points on the line!"

**_Donna sekai ni ita'tte donna basho ni ita'tte_**

**_Mata sorezore no unmei ga motsureatteyuku_**

**_Hikareau you ni _**

(No matter what world we live, no matter where we are,

Our fates will get entangled once again.

As if being attracted to one another...

"You don't know if that's true!" Yusei sighed, "But if it is, then I plan on defending myself and taking you down! I activate my trap Crossline Counter! Now if I take battle damage during your turn, I double it and add it as attack points! Plus now my dragon gets to attack you!"

Stardust Dragon: (ATK: 4300)

"Well, what're ya waitin' for?" Jack chuckled.

"Stardust Dragon, let's not keep 'im waiting any longer!"

Stardust's blazing breath burned through Jack's very being. The champion slumped for a moment...

**Yusei: 100 (8)**

**Jack: 800 (8)**

Yusei rode over to his side to see if he was okay, "Jack!"

"Don't worry about me!" Jack recovered, "In fact you should be a lot more concerned with yourself! I activate the speed-spell Overboost! So now I get four extra speed-counters this round, completely maxing me out!" Jack gunned his ride and zoomed across the bright track at top speed.

**_Bokura wa kono hoshi de deau tameni umaretekita no darou_**

**_Kono saki ni matsu donna konan o mo koeteyuku tame ni_**

(Were we born to meet on this planet, I wonder.

As to go and overcome any hardship that awaits us ahead.)

**Yusei: 100 (8)**

**Jack: 800 (12)**

"With that much power, there's no telling what he'll play next!" Yusei braced for the worst.

"That's right. So get ready for me to call on one of my favorites; now from my hand, I play the speed-spell End of Storm!" when Jack played his super-rare spell, massive winds blew up, once again obscuring the field, "And with the power of this card, Yusei, I can now put you in your place! And since 'first'_-_place is going to be all mine, I guess that you'll have to settle for 'second'!"

**_Donna ni harareta'tte togireru koto wa nai sa_**

**_Yori fukaku e kizamareteyuku _**

(No matter how far we are apart, I'll still go on.

I'm going to engrave it even deeper.)

"I'm not settling for anything, Jack! And that's because Stardust Dragon's special ability can counter your End of Storm!" Yusei released his dragon to calm the storm.

"Perhaps, but at what cost? Just look! That counter only works if you sacrifice Stardust; and with him gone, you're wide-open! Making this the perfect time for my favorite trap: the Sneak Exploder!" Jack's reversed continuous-trap depicts Berserk Gorilla bracing for numerous explosions, "So during your next standby-phase, you lose 500 life-points for every monster on my field! And since I've got the ravenous Red Dragon Archfiend, that means your life-points don't stand a chance!"

**_Dakara kizutsuku koto o osorezu ni_**

(So, don't be afraid of getting hurt, and...)

"Oh, no!" Luna cried, "That trap'll finish Yusei off and next round he'll lose!"

"Then he'd better figure something out 'this' round, and quick!" Jason added.

"Then I'd better keep 'this' round going! So I activate Stardust Dragon's special ability, and bring 'im back to the field!" Stardust returned (ATK: 2500), "And then I'll activate the trap. Meteor Stream! This slams you with 1000 points of damage since I special-summoned a monster back from my grave this round! Stardust Dragon, end this now!" Yusei's dragon fired another stream of Cosmic Flare.

"Just what I was waiting for!" Jack replied, "There's a reason I'm the champ; Jack Atlas is destined for great things, while you're just destined for defeat! This adventure's over; I play Crimson Fire! Not only does it block your 1000-point trap, but it boomerangs it right back to you, at double the damage! Goodbye, Yusei!"

**_Bokura wa kono hoshi de deau tameni umaretekita no darou_**

**_Kujikesou'na toki mo te o sashinobeaeru futari de aru youni_**

(Were we born to meet on this planet, I wonder.

As if we're a pair outstretching their hands to each other even through daunting times.)

_(Keyboard solo!)_

Archfiend countered Cosmic Flare with his own Scorching Crimson Flare. The demonic dragon's flames proved too powerful for the cosmic beast...

"Sorry, Jack, but I play my trap Shining Silver Force, which douses your comeback and destroys all the spells and traps on your field!" a milti-colored forcefield protected Stardust form the condemning blazes, while every card on Jack's spell/trap zone were obliterated.

"You're still as annoying as ever!" Jack growled.

"I never was one to give up, and with your speed-counters about to run out of gas due to Overboost's effect, I don't plan on starting any time soon!" sure enough, Jack's counters lowered to one...

**Yusei: 100 (8)**

**Jack: 800 (1)**

His runner skid, decelerating rapidly and slowed down real quickly, allowing Yusei to catch up with him even quicker.

"How's the new view," Yusei joked as he and Jack crossed paths, their eyes glaring at one another for what seemed like forever, "See ya', Jack!" the Satellite then raced away, with his Stardust Dragon soaring alongside.

"Time to get us home!" Yusei drew his last card of the duel and started his turn, "This is just what I needed! I play the speed-spell, (5D's) Stardust Accelerator!" Yusei's new spell shows the Stardust Dragon itself, racing alongside an unidentified turbo-duelist, with the power of cosmic stardust running through its illuminated body, "And since I have at least 8 speed-counters, the ATK points of my Stardust Dragon are doubled! As well as granted the ability to lock all spells and traps you throw at me!" the dragon screeched over his roof-piercing power.

**_Motto kakenuketeyuku shinjiteru mono sono mune ni dakishimete_**

**_Shinjitsu wa itsudatte hitotsu dakara kokoro no koe o kanjite_**

(Go forth, race even harder and take your beliefs into your embrace!

The truth always comes in ones, so sense the voice inside your heart!)

Stardust Dragon: (ATK: 5000)

"5000? It's too powerful!"

"I don't wanna hurt you, Jack, but if ending this duel is the only way home..., then I gotta attack! Stardust Dragon! Take out his life-points with Stardust Acceleration!" the cosmic dragon channeled all the energy coursing through its body into a small point in its maw.

Stardust released its powers as a devastating stream of white sparkling flame to race back along the track. It was big enough to engulf Jack and Archfiend both, and they were driving right into it.

**_Yuruginai kimochi o kakagete ashita e no kizashi o tsukame_**

(Hoist your sentiments firm and grasp the signs for tomorrow...)

_(Keyboard solo!)_

Archfiend roars in agony, while Jack lets out a heart-rending holler...

* * *

As light flashed once more, Jack's runner all but skid across the track, tossing rider onto the asphalt as it flips over, sparking and flaming. Yusei side-skid hard to curb his momentum and came to a halt at the other end of the track, breathing heavily.

Above them, the holograms, or actualities, of Stardust Dragon and Red Dragon Archfiend have frozen in place, angrily nose-to-nose, seconds from clashing, frozen in time, turned grey... well, you get the idea?

_"Ladies and gentlemen, we seem to be experiencing some technical difficulties at this moment. Your patience is appreciated as we try to sort this matter out,"_ the MC tried hard not to panic and whispered harshly at the cameramen, "Can someone tell me why these two dragons have been frozen in midair? Get the Director on the line!"

The dragons began to blur, as though the holograms were breaking up, then glowed blindingly and vanished into sparkles.

* * *

"What just happened?" Tanner asked in amazement.

"First they were dueling, then they disappeared," Yanagi gasped.

"And now they're back and their dragons are gone!" Ken added

Leo looked at the scoreboard and gobsmacked as his eyes grew big, "Look at the score! Check out Jack's life-points!"

**Yusei: 100 (8)**

**Jack: 0 (1)**

"Is that the right score?" Dexter asked.

"Yusei won..." Luna desisted softly, returned to earth, "He's the champion now."

"HE WHAT?" everyone gasped, except for Jason and Gabriella, who was relieved the pain in her arm was gone.

* * *

David saw the score as well, "That's weird. Their life-points clanged. What's going on...?"

* * *

Sayer also, "Yusei won...?"

* * *

And so did Lazar, with his sniveling and freaked-out self, "JACK LOOOST?"

* * *

Yusei dismounted his bike and raced over to jack, as fast as his feet could take him, "Are you okay?"

The now-former champion struggled to look up at Yusei, blood pouring down his face from a few deep cuts on his forehead, "You beat me... I don't know how you did it, Yusei... but you're the champ, now."

"If that vision was true, none of this matters," Yusei said, "Because it looks like we _all_ might lose. We're in danger and our cities might be destroyed, and we have to unite to stop it from happening!"

"You always wanted to be a hero... now here's your chance," whit his last, exhausting breath, Jack passed out...

* * *

Meanwhile, the MC was on the brink of going crazy, "Has anyone heard from the Director?"

Luckly, Goodwin came just in time on a holo-screen, _"The duel's over. The winner's Yusei; tell them all."_

"Ugh...Ah... Guh! _It's over!" _the MC screamed,_ "Yusei is our winner! From the refuge of refuse he rose! From the slums of Satellite he now reigns supreme! I proudly present New Domino City's newest hero- Yuseeeeei Fudo!"

* * *

_

**DUEL-MON DATABASE**

**(1) Hyper Synchron (V2)  
**

**Stats: [Machine/Effect] Level 4 ATK/1600 DEF/800**

**Attribute: LIGHT**

**Description: When this card is sent to the Graveyard when used as a Synchro Material Monster for the Synchro Summon of a Dragon-Type Synchro Monster, that Synchro Monster gains the following effects: ● It cannot be destroyed by battle. ● It gains 800 ATK. ● During your second Standby Phase after this turn, remove it from play.

* * *

**

**TO BE CONTINUED: YU-GI-OH 5D'S REVERSE OF ARCADIA**

**Please Review.**

**P.S.: The Kaiba/Jason duel will come soon... (or not.)**


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